Survivor
by Angelofshipping
Summary: Two more years. Two more years and she would be out of this horrible lottery. However, the odds weren't in Heather Mildbreeze's favour as she was reaped to be District 12 female tribute for the 69th Hunger Games. OC X Haymitch
1. Prologue

**Author's Note: Hello readers!**

**Firstly, I would like to thank you for taking the time to read my story**

**Secondly, so this is my first fanfiction **

**Thirdly, I hope** **you enjoy it**

* * *

The sound of her brother calling out her name echoed in Heather's ears as she ran out of their house. She didn't stop running though. Not when she bumped into other people. Not when she got out of the merchant section and into the Hob. Not when she saw the Peacemakers looking at her, and they usually scared her. No, the pain was stronger than her fear. Eventually, the ache she felt in her heart got the best of her as she collapsed on her knees.

Heather knew that her knees were probably bleeding, but she didn't care. No, the heartache was much more stronger than the throbbing she felt in her patellas.

Tears start to stream down her face.

_He was gone_

_He was gone, and it was all their fault_

Slowly, Heather started to hiccup as she sobbed for Rust. Her best friend. Her partner in crime. The only person who truly understood her. Now, he was gone. Killed in cold blood. When he was reaped for the 65th Hunger Games, it was no secret that he wouldn't make out alive. He was only twelve. Nonetheless, the reality of this didn't hit Heather until she watched the life in his eyes go out when the Career from District 2 stabbed him.

So she cried. She cried as the bittersweet memories that they had shared came flashing through her head. She cried as she recalled all their mischevious adventures together. She cried until her eyes couldn't produce any more tears.

After the tears dried, she vowed to herself. Vowed to never forget Rust. People might remember him as the little boy from District 12 who stood no chance against the Careers, but Heather would remember him as Rust. Rust, the boy with the dark hair and gray eyes. Rust, the boy who struggled to pronounce big words. Rust, always sweet and truthful.

Heather started to look back on the day where they met. The boys from the merchant section were making fun of his clothes. They were ragged and big on him. His family couldn't afford to buy him new garments so they gave him his older brother's clothes. When Rust stood up for himself, the other boys start to beat him up. Fortunately, Heather saw what happened and threatened to tell their mothers if they didn't get lost.

Scared, the boys ran out of the scene. Heather then took Rust's hand and lead them to her house so she could have her father bandage his wounds. Sadly, he wasn't at home, but that was okay because Heather already knew how to bind wounds as she saw her father do it over a million times. She told Rust to sit, and when he told her that she doesn't have to do this, she gave a look that made him immediately sit on the stool.

"Thank you," he said after she was done.

"You're welcome," Heather grinned at him. "Just a question, where were your friends?"

"I-I don't have any," he looked down, ashamed.

"Me neither," she told him. "Do you wanna be friends then?"

Rust's face was full of shock at what Heather had revealed. He doubted that she wanted to be friends with him, just like other kids. She, unlike him, was from the merchant section. She looked well-fed and pretty in her sky blue dress which matched the colour of her eyes. However, when he looked into her warm eyes, all his hesitation disappeared.

"Okay," he smiled at her which the young girl eagerly returned.

Later then, Aeson found her. He was breathing heavily, indicating that he was running after her. His eyes soon began to fill with disquietude and worry as they laid upon his sister. Her blue eyes, normally bright and full of life, were dull. Although Aeson was aware of the fact that Heather had the right to feel that way, his concern for her didn't stop. It only grew when he noticed her bleeding knees.

He picked her up and sat them together under a tree. In his lap, Heather was still, unmoving. For a while, silence engulfed them. People passing by them stared, but neither brother and sister cared. It was really weird. Usually, Aeson and Heather were loud, highly energetic and enthusiastic.

Suddenly, Heather's grieve turned into anger. Her fists clenched. She hated the Capitol. Hated that District 2 boy. Hated the whole Career pack. Hated Rust's three older brothers who did nothing as they stood by, watching their little brother being reaped for a bloodthirsty game.

"I hate them," she muttered. Aeson turned towards her. The first thing he wanted to do was scold her. He knew that she was referring to the Capitol. His mind urged to lecture on the consequences of what she had said. The punishment the Peacemakers would indulge on her if they had heard her. His heart though reminded him of the pain that Heather was going through. So he held onto her and kissed her strawberry blond hair.

"Aeson?"

He hummed.

"If, if you were to be reaped. Will you try to come back to me?" Heather asked him. Innocent baby blue eyes looking into his.

Aeson froze. He wasn't expecting this question from her.

"Of course, I will," he chuckled, trying to smooth the tension between them.

"But you don't know how to fight or any survival skills," she cried out, tears once again dominating her angelic face.

"Hey, hey, hey," Aeson softened his voice. "Did you forget that I would get three days to train before I get into the arena?"

"No, I know," Heather hiccuped. "But those Careers are so strong, how would you defeat them? Eventually, you're gonna have to face them."

Aeson sighed, thinking of a proper response. Finally, he thought of a perfect idea.

"Then I'll train," he smiled at her. "We'll train for the games just like those Careers."

"How?" Heather inquired.

"We'll watch the way they fight in the games and we try to imitate them," he explained. "We can even go out into the forest and learn how to hunt, how to camp."

With every word that Aeson had said, hope started to rise in Heather's eyes. It wasn't unusual for the duo to go out into the forest. It was illegal, but no one would suspect them. Sure they were the pranksters of the District, but they were trustworthy in the eyes of the people as they help their father with patients. Normally, they only went there for a nature walk and to swim.

"Aeson, will you promise not to leave me?" Heather looked at him with optimistic eyes.

Aeson wasn't shocked at her request. He understood her concern. Right now, his name was in the reaping bowl five times. Their father was the only healer in the District and so he was surrounded by sick people. The risk of him catching a disease continues to increase every year. Their mother, well, she died five days after giving birth to Heather.

He smiled sadly at his sister. "I can't promise that I will always be with you, Heather," cue the pout. "However, I promise you that I will always be here."

He placed his hand on her chest, where her heart was pounding steadily. Heather's lips started to curl up as she hugged her brother tightly.

Aseon began to sing the ending lyrics of the lullaby their mother used to sing to him as they laid on the shade of the oak tree.

_I don't need to stand next to you  
__You always had me along the way  
__Just think of me and I'll be here  
__And know that I've always loved you_


	2. Chapter 1: The Reaping

Although a horrible event was about to happen, the weather was actually nice. At least, that's what Heather thought as she ran past the blooming flowers. However, despite the weather being wonderful and all, it was a silent day. The birds weren't chirping like they usually do, the people kept to themselves and even, the wind wasn't breezing like usual. It was as if every being knew the unpunishable crime that was going to be committed today.

School was closed due to the fact that the Reaping day was treated as a holiday. That baffled Heather as it was anything but. Now in the Capitol, it won't surprise Heather if they listed as a national holiday rather than a national penalty.

Heather continued to run, ignoring the ongoing pain she felt in her limbs. She was drenched in sweat, but she didn't care. Ever since Rust died and she had that conversation with Aeson, Heather began to train for the Hunger Games. After his death, the children in her school tried to befriend her but she harshly cut them off. The way they look at her as if she was some kind of a delicate flower about to wither.

Her behaviour worried both her brother and father. They thought that she avoided making friends because she was afraid that one of them was going to be reaped and killed. But that wasn't the case. She was afraid of replacing Rust, of dishonouring his memory.

The only person she allowed herself to associate with was Miche, the baker's oldest son. He was one of the few people who was nice to Rust when he was alive. Heather didn't talk to Miche often, but she enjoyed their conversation.

She was still angry at the Capitol and District 2. That never changed. So she pushed all her anger into her training, imagining the face of the District 2 boy whenever she was practicing knife throwing. At first, Aeson didn't think that it was healthy that she was doing this. Thankfully, he soon realized how it helped with letting out her rage. Even if he didn't like the methods she used.

Pushing those thoughts from her mind, Heather came into a halt as she entered her District's cemetery. Steadily, she started to walk towards her father's grave. Generally, in District 12, dead bodies are cremated. But that depended on whether the people of the District wanted to cremate it or not. Usually, the dead tributes and coal miners that die during a mine explosion are buried here. Heather's father was a different case though. Everyone liked him, even the people from the Seam. The reason being is that he helped them without taking anything from them in return.

When she asked her about that, he said, "Heather, life has been generous to us, but not to those people. At the end of the day, it's not about what we have gained from life, it's about what we have done with it. I became a healer because I want to help people and I intend to keep doing that. It's only when you give that you realize the true meaning of happiness. Promise me that you won't be scared to do that when you get older. "

Heather had always looked up at her father, but since that moment she was really proud to call the man her father.

He died last year in his sleep. Something that suited him. By that time, Aeson was ready to take over as the healer of the district. Heather would have been too, but she was too focused on her training. There was also Blaze, her father's attentive student. He was the oldest son of the apothecary's owner and Aeson's brother-in-law. Heather didn't like him because of his views towards the people of the Seam, but he was mostly okay. Hopefully, when Heather is eighteen, she would be able to join them.

Sitting in front of her father's grave, she thought of today's events. This would be her fifth reaping, and while the kids from the Seam have a bigger chance of getting reaped, Heather didn't trust the Capitol to keep the lottery random. Normally, Heather would visit her father's grave at the start of each month to tell him of major events happening. This time, however, is so she could say goodbye to him. In case she gets reaped. In case she doesn't make it back to him.

"Hi, Daddy," she started. "I'm afraid that I don't have juicy gossip to share with you. Unless you count June fooling Aeson by making him think that her water broke. He falls for it every time. But I don't blame him. June is at the end of her third trimester. She could give birth at any moment right now. God forbid if she delivers the baby during the reaping. Knowing June, though, that's quite a possibility."

Tears began to form in her eyes at that moment. "I love you, Daddy. I don't know if this is going to be the last time I come here. I just wanted to let you know that I love you. You're the best parent anyone could've asked for. You're probably shaking your head at me right now, but you are. I remember when I was five and I saw all those girls with their hair in beautiful hairdos. I told you about how I wanted my hair to be like that and you tried to grant my wish, but you were terrible at it. I remember crying about what a mess my hair became and in exchange, you let me mess up your hair. Then we laughed together at how ridiculous we were. Aeson thought that we were crazy, but that made us laugh more. For that, I thank you, Dad. For making me laugh, for giving good advice when I need them, for being there, and for trying your best to make me happy. I love you."

Heather wiped the tears from her eyes and stood up. She laid the boutique of marigolds in front of her father's grave. Marigolds. Her father's favourite flowers. The flowers her mother was named after.

She started to head towards her home so she could get ready for the Reaping. Her legs were still sore from running.

"Heather!" She heard someone calling out her name.

She turned around to see Mr. Everdeen and his daughter, Katniss, walking in her direction. "Hello, Mr. Everdeen, Kat," Heather greeted them.

Mr. Everdeen smiled at her but it soon faded when he saw the state of Heather's eyes. "You okay?" He asked with a concerned tone.

Heather nodded, "I was just visiting my dad. You know, in case I get reaped."

"I hope you don't," a voice spoke. They both looked at Katniss, who was staring at Heather worriedly. It was no secret that she looked up at Heather and she categorized her as an older sister. Just like Heather saw her and Primrose, Mr. Everdeen's other daughter, as her little sisters.

Heather smiled brightly at the little girl and kneeled in front of her. "Tell you what, Kat, if I get reaped, I promise to come back to you."

"Really?" Katniss asked cautiously.

"I promise you that I will try my best," Heather held out her pinky to Katniss and they locked their pinkies together, signifying their promise. "How is Prim? Did the herbs I gave you help bring her fever down?"

"They did," Mr. Everdeen nodded. "I don't know if she'll be able to make it to the Reaping though. We'll have to see about that. Thank you though. For the herbs. And the dresses."

"Oh, it was no big of a deal," Heather assured him. "It's not like they fit me anymore."

"I know, but won't you want to save them for your brother's child?"

"No, not really. Besides, they have more chances of having a boy than a girl," Heather told them.

"How would you know?" Katniss inquired with a smile.

Heather put on a thinking face for the sake of the little girl. "Well, for starters, June has been eating too much than a woman would if she was having a girl. And I would know cause I have nursed those kinds of women before. After all, males tend to eat more than females do."

"They do," Katniss agreed, looking at her father in a teasing way. He rolled his eyes at the two girls.

"All right, we better get going," Mr. Everdeen announced. "It was nice running into you, Heather."

"Bye, Heather," the little girl waved at her.

Heather waved back then watched them go towards the Seam. She had met Mr. Everdeen and Katniss when she was scouting through the forest with her brother. Both parties were surprised the moment they ran into each other, but then began the wonderful friendship between them. They also found out that they could benefit from one another. Mr. Everdeen would teach them about archery while Aeson and Heather taught him about edible plants. To be honest though, Heather was more into throwing knives than archery.

"Oh dear brother, I'm home!" Heather yelled as she entered her house. It wasn't that big. There were four rooms in general, and one of them used to be her father's office but now is her brother's. Two bathrooms, one kitchen, and a big living room, that was it.

"Is that you, my ever beloved sister?!" He shouted back at her, coming into the living room later on. "Geez, you look horrible."

"Thanks, cause that's what every girl wants to hear," she restored back sarcastically.

"Will you two ever stop with the dramatics?" June said, joining her husband to stand next to him. Usually, Aeson and Heather would do their best to avoid getting scolded from June. But with her huge stomach, it was hard for them to take her seriously. "And Aeson is right, you do look horrible. Go take a shower and you can find a dress that you're going to wear in your bed."

Heather stuck out her tongue at Aeson when he smirked smugly at her but did what June had ordered her to. The dress that June has picked for her was simple and beautiful. Just like how she liked it. The top was white and it was baby blue from the waist down. It was knee-lenght and had short sleeves. After showering and putting on the dress, Heather went downstairs so that June could brush her hair. It was a ritual they started when Aeson and June had first started dating, which was around the time Heather was twelve.

Aside from what happened earlier, there were no jokes being said in the Mildbreeze household. June was silent when she was brushing Heather's hair. Her hair was one of the things that made her different from the other girls. While they were either dark-haired or blonde, Heather's hair was strawberry blonde. As she grew older, she began to feel paranoid that she was adopted. However, her father assured her that it wasn't true because he was there during her birth.

June grabbed a blue bandana and made it into a headband for Heather. She left the knot at the nape of Heather's neck. She then took a golden necklace and placed it around Heather's neck. It used to belong to Heather's mother. The necklace was simple with one charm on it. The charm was shaped like a fan and had graved stripes.

"You look beautiful," June said as they looked at their reflection in the mirror. June hugged her from behind and kissed her in the neck. Even though she appeared tired, June still looked pretty with her blond wavy hair, fair skin, and blue eyes.

"Thank you," Heather said in a soft voice.

Later on, Heather, June, and Aeson joined the sea of people as they headed towards the Hall of Justice. Boys couldn't stop looking at Heather because of how pretty she looked. It was no secret that Heather was more naturally beautiful than an average girl. It wasn't something she was proud of though. In fact, it was the main reason why the other girls didn't like her. Heather separated from her brother and sister-in-law as she went to stand with the herd of sixteen-years-old girls.

Nola Raynott, District 12's escort, was true to the Capitol's fashion as she had an orange wig and a bright red dress with gold bird designs on them. Mayor Undersee was sitting next to her, and the third seat was, of course, empty. Haymitch Abernathy, the only living victor from District, was never on time. Right now, he was a middle-aged man who was often found drunk and was often embarrassing District 12. He stumbled on the stage, drunkenly falling onto his chair. Heather observes this with an impassive face.

She had watched his Hunger Games. He had won the 50th Hunger Game by using the force field around the arena to kill his last opponent. It was smart which made Heather wonder, how did this man, who used to be handsome and intelligent, become like this?

Eventually, she moved those thoughts to the back of her mind as Mayor Undersee stood up and started to tell the history of Panem. He then proceeds to list the rules of the Hunger Games and previous District 12 victors. After introducing her, Nola Raynott got up from her seat and walked to the podium.

"Happy Hunger Games! And may the odds be in your favour!" She then goes on about how it's an honour to be here and other stuff that Heather won't bother remembering. She resisted the urge to yawn because she had slept late last night and woke up early.

"Ladies first!" Nola declared as always. She moved towards the girls' glass bowl and pulled a slip of paper. "Heather Mildbreeze!"

It was as if the earth stopped spinning and swallowed her whole, as if all the air inside her lungs were stolen from her. Immediately, all the people who knew her looked at her direction.

Shocked, Heather fought against the tension that was starting to form in her body and walked. She walked proudly to the stage, keeping her face straight ahead even though her muscles felt rigid. Finally, when she had reached the stage, Nola looked at her approvingly.

Feeling that someone was looking at her, Heather turned around to see Haymitch eyeing her with a judgy look on his face. He probably thought she was too girly to make it through the Games. Angry, she gave him a threatening glare and turned towards the front before the camera could catch her.

"Time to pick our boy tribute!" Nola announced enthusiastically. She then trotted with her ridiculously long high hells to the glass ball that held the boys' names and pulled another slip of paper. "Blaze Amberforge!"

A young man that looked about 18 years old stepped up and started to walk to the podium. He looked so nervous, rubbing his hands every now and then. He had a lanky body figure with black hair and olive skin. He was definitely from the Seam.

He wouldn't last a day in the arena, Heather thought.

"Let's give a round of applause to this year's District 12 tributes!" Nola said excitedly. The audience clapped their hands, and Heather caught sight of Aeson and June. They looked shocked, worried and probably sick to the stomach.

Heather and Blaze shook hands and as soon as the anthem ended, Peacemakers hauled them and took them to the Hall of Justice building. Where they will be placed in a room that their loved ones can visit them in.

To Heather's surprise, the first person to visit her is Mr. Everdeen. Katniss wasn't with him this time and he was holding a boutique of flowers. She looked closely at the flowers and her eyes widened. They were pink heathers.

"I've been told that they represent good luck," He informed her, noticing the way she was looking at the flowers. "I was meaning to give you this tomorrow, but as it seems you won't be here."

"Thank you," she took the boutique from his hands.

"Don't hesitate, Heather," he told her. "Always focus on your primary goals. You have the potential to win. Don't waste all the training that you did."

Biting her bottom lip, she nodded.

"Please, try to come back home. For Prim. For Katniss."

"For Katniss," Heather promised.

Aeson came bragging into the room after Mr. Everdeen left and Heather instantly ran into his arms. June was right behind him and she didn't hesitate to pull the two into her arms, kissing Heather in the nape as tears fell from her eyes. Heather didn't want to waste their time talking, all she wanted was to be engulfed in her family's warm hold. So that's what they did, they used all the time they had holding onto each other. No words were exchanged. They both knew that Heather would try her best to come back.

Finally, Heather pulled it away from June and Aeson when Peacekeepers entered the room. Heather stared at June's huge baby bump, wondering if she'll be able to meet the little person who was residing in the womb.

Aeson pulled her face into his hands and rubbed her cheeks while placing his forehead upon hers. "I love you," he whispered to her.

"I love you too," she murmured back.

Then, she left.


	3. Chapter 2: The Capitol

**Author's Note:**

**Okay, so this chapter features the train ride, Heather confronting Haymitch and the Tribute Parade**

* * *

Cameras followed Heather and Blaze as they walked to the train station from the car. To say that the car ride was awkward would be accurate. Blaze blushed every time he looked at Heather and she avoided talking with him. After all, she shouldn't form any emotional connection with him. It would be hard for her in the arena to leave him. She knew that she was being selfish. That was not how her father raised her. But it was either kill or be killed, and Heather would be damned if she left her brother in this mortal world alone. Aside from the baby in June's womb, Heather was his only living birth family member.

The tribute train was a fascinating sight for Heather. She catches herself with her mouth open a little bit on the television screen on the wall. Heather blushed and suddenly the ground seemed more interesting.

Once they entered and the doors closed swiftly behind them, the train started to move. The inside of the vehicle was fancier than it's outer appearance. With bright exquisite different designed on the walls and floors. But before she could explore more of the decor, Nola motioned for the avoxes to take Heather and Blaze to their living chambers.

"I'll come by to collect you for supper in an hour," Nola told them. "In the meantime, feel free to use anything you like in your rooms."

The moment Heather saw the inviting bed in her room, she immediately raced towards it and laid down. Sleep hit her like a ton of bricks.

* * *

Feeling someone shaking, Heather opened her eyes expecting to see June's golden locks floating above her face but instead it was Nola. Her face was still caked up with heavy makeup which made her look inhuman. That was one thing that Heather would never understand about the people of the Capitol, their fashion.

"Sorry to bother you, dear. But supper is ready and we're all waiting for you," Nola informed her in a fake worried tone.

Heather covered her mouth as a yawn escaped her. "Sorry."

"It's okay. Just don't take a long time changing your clothes." With that, Effie left the room.

Heather hopped out of bed rubbing her neck as she went into the bathroom. She washed her face and brushed her teeth. Then she started at her reflection in the mirror. Freckles that used to surround her whole face, now only appeared on her nose and cheeks. Her eyes were the lightest shade of blue, her hair all over the place, and her dress wrinkled. Taking a brush out of one of the drawers, Heather tamed her hair and pulled it into a ponytail, leaving the baby hairs on the side.

The clothes in the dressing area were all fine garments, not something that Heather was interested in. She quickly chose a green tank top and black leggings. She then put on a white button-up shirt, sealing the first three buttons so her cleavage won't show. She left her necklace on.

To Heather's relief, she didn't get lost while searching for the dining cart. Every head in the room turned towards her and the first person Heather laid her eyes upon was Haymitch. He was already preparing to drink the bottle of wine in front of him. Clenching her jaw, all Heather could see was red. He was to be their mentor. His job was to guide her and Blaze on how to survive the arena, but here he was. Preparing on getting himself drunk out of his mind. Like he didn't care about what would happen to them in that deadly arena. Well, if this was how it's going to be then Heather was going to make him care.

Calmly, she marched towards him and snatched the cup filled with wine before it made contact with Haymitch's lips. Heather then strolled to the window, opened it, and spilled the alcoholic content. Silence dominated the room, but Heather didn't care.

She placed the empty cup in its original location, took all the material that contained alcohol in it, and sat across from Haymitch. Heather forced a smile on her face and intertwined her fingers together placing them in front of her on the table.

"Hello, I'm sorry if I haven't introduced myself but I'm Heather Mildbreeze," She said in a chirpy voice then pulled her hand for a handshake.

Haymitch stared at her hand with a blank expression. "Is this some kind of joke?"

"It depends on the way you look at it. But this is me telling you that I'm no one to mess with," Heather told him. "And you are going to help me win this thing." 

Haymitch leaned back in his chair with a smirk on his face. "Why is that, sweetheart?"

"Because I have no idea what it's like out there. Watching previous games isn't enough. Look, I don't know what happened to you and frankly, I don't care. It's your business, but it's also your job to ensure that I have a chance of surviving in the arena. If I'm gonna die, I'm gonna die fighting."

After that, they had an intense staring competition. Both opponents refused to give up until Haymitch decided to back up. He was looking at her with… respect? It was hard to tell with the man.

"Alright," He gruffed out. "Just don't interfere with my drinking."

"Deal," Heather said immediately then pulled out her pinky.

Haymitch eyed it with disbelief. "Seriously?"

Heather gave him a look and held out her pinky firmly. Grudgingly, Haymitch pulled out his own and locked it with hers, then took the bottles of wine from her. Smiling triumphantly, Heather moved her attention to the food. Feeling their eyes on her, Heather looked at Blaze and Nola. They were gaping at her with a bewilderment expression on their faces like she was some kind of superhero. To be honest though, Heather did feel like a superhero.

She gave a smile, which they quickly returned, and went back to the food. She filled her bowl with vegetable soup, made a cheese chicken sandwich, and a side dish of salad. The food tasted like heaven in Heather's mouth. She felt like she was on cloud nine. She really couldn't understand why Haymitch wouldn't touch anything but alcohol contents.

Heather observed him as she drank the mango juice. He looked to be in his mid-thirties with olive skin and greasy dark hair. When he caught her looking at him, she sent him a cheery smile which he grumbled at.

After the meal is over, they had to move into another compartment so they could watch the reapings of the other districts. From the corner of her eye, Heather could see Blaze turning a little green and she would bet it was because of how much the food he ate. While it was understandable for him to eat like that since he was from the Seam, it wasn't good for his health. She furrowed her eyebrows and when the others got out of the dining care she quietly gestured for an Avox.

"Can you bring me a ginger and cinnamon tea?" She asked him.

He nodded at her request and she went on to join the others.

Each district has its reapings at different times so that the Capitol can watch them accordingly. Throughout the recap, Heather focused on District 1, 2, and 4. Specifically District 2.

From District 1, there was a blonde girl with a baby face and a muscular boy who volunteered. District 2's tributes are exactly what Heather thought they would be. Tall, athletic, and arrogance clear on their hard-stoned faces. It disgusted her that they were eager to participate in an event where they had to kill people for the entertainment of those who enslave them to work. In District 4, the girl and boy stood tall together even though it was obvious that they were nervous which made them gain Heather's respect. Other tributes that stuck in Heather's mind are the well-built boy from District 7, a thirteen-year-old boy from District 8, and a girl from 10 that looked too short for her age.

Then there was District 12. Nola called out Heather's name then she walked confidently to the stage, something that pleased her on how cool she seemed. Blaze's name was drawn and he took his place nervously next to Heather. The anthem started then ended, and that was it

By that time, the Avox came back with the tea. Heather quietly thanked him then nudged Blazed. He looked at her with curiosity.

"Here," she handed him the tea. "It helps with stomach pain. Also, try to avoid laying down for about an hour. If you don't you might get indigestion."

Heather got up from her seat and turned to Haymitch and Nola. "Well, I'll see you guys tomorrow. Good night."

As expected, Haymitch ignored her and Nola wished her a good night too.

Back in her room, she takes off her white shirt and immediately settled down on the bed. The sheets were soft and sleek. The comforter brought warmth to Heather's body. She then let her thoughts wander towards Aeson and June. Were they having trouble falling asleep? Would the stress that June undoubtedly had affect the baby? Will Aeson's concern for her distract him from his work?

So many questions were in Heather's head and she didn't know how to answer any of them. She wanted to feel scared, wanted to feel anger, and just cry. But she didn't feel any of those. Instead, all she felt… was nothing. It wasn't the first time that she has been through this. Ever since Rust's death, Heather has been questioning the point of living and it only got worse when her father died. Many times Heather has experienced this. She was breathing and all, but it didn't feel like living anymore.

Aeson.

Yes, he was the reason that she tried to avoid feeling this. She might die in the arena, but she would fight. She at least owed him that much.

* * *

Just like yesterday's morning, Heather woke up early and she was the first one to be up and running about. She sat up on her bed and began stretching her arms then it hit her. Today, they were going to arrive at the Capitol. Quickly, she scraped towards the dressing area. The first thing that she needed to do to ensure her survival in the arena is getting sponsors. The parade won't really help because she was definitely going to wear a coal miner outfit. The Capitol people would be there to greet her in the station and this was Heather's chance to leave an impression on them.

Unfortunately, finding an appropriate dress was a bit harder than she thought. They were either too short or too long, too fancy or too simple, or worse, revealing. Then, Heather found it. It was a sleeveless white dress decorated with pink roses that reached knee length. While the top part seemed tight, the skirt was puffy. It wasn't too fancy, but it still held elegance in it along with simplicity. Smiling, Heather took it plus a cropped cardigan to cover her arms. After putting them on, she combed her hair and let it be in its natural curls. Her mother's necklace didn't fit in with her outfit so she took it off and made it into a bracelet around her wrist.

Breakfast was already being served when Heather entered the dining cart. It was set up in a buffet arrangement. There were bread buns, eggs, hams, a bowl of fruit, and so much more food than what's needed. Heather's hand clenched around the chair she was going to pull. People were dying from starvation in District 12, and this was how the Capitol treated its food.

She quietly sat and filled her plate with a ham, a bread bun, cheese and an apple. She also filled her cup of glass with orange juice. Chewing quietly, she started to think about the arena. Usually, they were different types of forest landscapes, but you could never tell with the Gamemakers because of their habits of changing things up. For example, three years ago in the 66th Hunger Games when the arena was nothing but jagged rocks, rivers and waterfalls with little vegetation. Heather could only hope that the same wouldn't apply to this year's hunger games.

Later, Effie and Blake come into the room.

Blaze flushed when he saw Heather and sat next to her. "T-thank you for the tea. It helped."

She smiled. "I'm glad it did. Just try not to eat too much. It's not good for your stomach."

"Okay," he nodded.

"I like your dress, Heather. It looks good on you," Nola commented. Her outfit today consisted of a cloud-like dress along with long golden high heels. It went well with her pale blue skin and new purple wig.

"Thank you," Heather said in a fake happy tone.

Surprisingly, Haymitch wasn't drunk when he came into the room. His face was deprived from any emotion which made it hard for Heather to read him. He slumped down on a chair and grabbed a pick of bread to eat along with some jam.

"Alright, would you two like to train together or separately?" He suddenly asked.

"We can train together then separately when the day of the Games approach," Heather answered him instantly with a firm voice before Blaze could open his mouth.

Narrowing his eyes, Haymitch looked at Heather and muttered, "Looks like I've got a fighter this year."

"What?" She asked.

"Nothing," He replied. "Here's your two pieces of advice for the day. The first one is that we're about to get into the Capitol and most likely, the people will be there to greet you. I want you to make them like you. There might be sponsors among them, and I highly doubt it that you'll attract any during the parade when those stylists dress you in coal miner outfits."

"And the second?" Blaze inquired nervously.

"When we get to the Capitol, you'll be put in the hand of your stylists. You won't like any of what they'll do to you, but don't resist."

He then took a bottle of liquor and got out of the room. Well, at least he held his part of the deal.

Suddenly, the room got dark and Heather guessed that they had entered the tunnel in one of the mountains that surrounded the Capitol. Darkness flooded the room then the light came and took its place. Both Heather and Blaze raced over to the window to stare at the city.

Those videos haven't done justice to the beauty of the city. It was bright and colourful. Shining with tall glimmering buildings and people with weird fashion senses. It all seemed surreal to Heather. She was finally here. She was in the Capitol.

People surrounded her and Blaze the second they got out of the train. They were yelling in high pitched voices and gushing in their Capitol accent about how cute they were. Heather had to hold her tongue, and it was getting harder for her to remind herself that these people will enjoy watching her die. She smiled with them and some even asked for a picture with her. That must be an accomplishment, and from what Heather could tell, they adored her.

* * *

At this point, Heather's cheeks were probably bleeding from how much she was biting them. She has been in the remake centre for about 2 hours now. And in those two hours alone, she has been facing tortures she never thought of before. That included waxing, being scrubbed to the point that her skin turned red, and nail trimming (which was the only part that didn't suck). Meanwhile, Heather's stylist, Zedoary Lockleaf looked at her like she was a piece of meat that was to be prepared for influential and powerful people. Her prep team consisted of Sorrel (who did her hair), Cerise (who did the waxing), and Azalea (who did her nails)

Thankfully, the waxing didn't take long because Heather had waxed before the reaping, and she loved herself even more for doing so. Still, her work didn't pass Cerise's high expectation. When she saw the baby hair on Heather's body, Cerise frowned her red-painted lips and raised her green eyebrows at her.

"Alright, you're doing good, honey. Now let's get onto the last touches," Sorrel exclaimed then applied a neon green colour on her lips that was the complete opposite colour of her purple dyed hair. "And may I say how beautiful your hair is."

"Thank you," Heather said before moaning as Cerise and Azalea rubbed lotion on her raw skin which smoothed it. Then they pulled her from the table and took off the thin robe she was allowed to wear, leaving her in her birth suit.

Heather's face became red as a tomato, and she covered her chest with her arms. Zedoary and the other three eyed her body, Cerise held a tweezer as if it was some sort of sword, ready to remove any last bit of hair. Heather felt really embarrassed and very self-conscious about her body.

To distract herself from this, she began to stare back at Zedoary. He looked to be about 6 feet tall with long half shaved hair. He had a tattoo of a beaver on the shaved part of his head. His skin was chocolate brown, and his eyes were hazel green. Unlike her prep team, Zedoary didn't wear a lot of makeup except for the black eyeliner and a golden lipstick he wore.

All of a sudden, Zedoary gave out a loud groan.

"No, no, no, this can't do. You're too perfect! Ah, that hourglass figure of yours. Those luscious breasts, toned stomach, and narrow hips. Not to mention, that you have the face of an angel, especially your blue bright full eyes. No, you're more beautiful than I thought."

Heather didn't know what to say. To be frank, she didn't presume that he would compliment her that much. "Uh... So, what are we going to do?"

Zedoary looked at her as if she was crazy. "We? What do you mean 'we'? I'm the stylist here, and I'm responsible for making sure that you look your absolute best."

"Well not really," Heather got the courage to remove her arms from her chest and put them on her hips instead. "Right now, your job is to make sure that I wear something that represents my district. We can leave all those other stuff later for the interview."

Cerise, Sorrel, and Azalea all chirped in their agreement.

"Well, I suppose we could do that," Zedoary said defeatedly. "I was thinking of putting you in a coal miner outfit, but you'll be wearing an overall skirt. As for your hair, since it won't fit in with the outfit, you could wear a black wig. We'll have to smudge your face with some coal dust for some effects as well."

Heather ignored her stylist as he continued to ramble about her clothes for the parade. Flash forward to when she is dressed in the attire Zedoary told her about. Coal dust smeared on her face just like he wanted and a black wig was placed on her head along with a headlamp hat.

Later then, when she's on the bottom floor with the other tributes, Zedoary said, "I'm sorry about earlier. It's just this is my first year as a stylist and I guess I got a little nervous."

"It's okay," Heather said, resisting the urge to tell him that she was the one with the right to be nervous. After all, she was going to be in a game where she'll either kill or be killed in.

Blaze emerged wearing the same thing as her along with his stylist. Their stylists arranged their body position on the chariot and gave them two shovels.

The opening music soon began, and the doors opened. Exposing the streets filled with a huge crowd.

The tributes from District 1 are the first to get out. They were beautiful in their golden-white long dresses and the green leaf crowns. The crowd went crazy for them.

Before Heather knew, it was District 12's time to get out. The people didn't cheer as loudly as they do for the other districts, but they still cheered nonetheless. Heather leaned her elbow on the handle of the shovel and waved at the crowd. She gave a million-dollar smile which managed to capture the attention of a few people.

It was still an accomplishment because soon Heather was going to show them. Show them that she wasn't someone to be reckoned with.


	4. Chapter 3: Training with your enemies

Heather hated this. Waking up in a bed that wasn't hers. Having no way of communicating with her family. Being treated like a lifeless doll who people dressed up to their desires. But all this was soon forgotten when she came out of her room and sniffed the alluring smell of breakfast. Besides all that other stuff she was thinking about, the people of the Capitol really knew how to treat their guests.

Dinner last night was okay. Haymitch gave them thump-ups for not flunking things up. It looked like he also got in the claws of those monsters in the Remake Centre because he appeared much cleaner than he did on the train. Feeling sorry for him, Heather patted him on the shoulders and shared some of her pastries with him. Yeah, he didn't appreciate that.

Dressed in tight pants and a short-sleeved tunic, Heather skipped to the dining table and filled her plate with food. Haymitch was the only one up.

"Morning!" Heather said in a chirpy voice.

Haymitch grumbled at her then halfway through the breakfast he told her, "Blaze said that he would like to be trained separately."

She stopped chewing midway. "Oh. Well, I guess it was bound to happen."

"Before the others show up, I have a question for you. Do you have skills that you can use in the arena?"

"I can throw knives and wrestle. I know the basic skills of hunting and archery. I'm also an expert when it comes to plants and herbs," Heather listed.

"Wrestle?" Haymitch gave a disbelieving look.

"I can demonstrate if you want," she narrowed her eyes at him.

"No, thank you. But, here's what you're going to do, honeybee. When you're in the training centre, I want you to spend time learning about something you don't know. Save those skills of yours until your private session with the Gamemakers," He explained to her.

"You got it, boss," Heather grinned. She also had to admit that Haymitch's advice was good. She always suspected that he was smart but right now her suspicion had been proven right.

"And stop doing that," he complained.

"Doing what? Annoying you? But you're the only one that I can annoy without having any consequences for doing so," she whined then gave him a teasing smile. "But seriously, though, thank you. And I'm sorry for not feeling sorry when I dumped your drink. I still don't"

Haymitch rolled his eyes at her and turned back to his spirits. Heather swore she saw him slightly curled his lips up into a smile. Maybe the man wasn't that bad after all.

Moving forward when it's ten, Heather joined Blaze and Nola in the elevator. After a few silent seconds, the doors opened revealing a huge gymnasium that contained different kinds of weapons and several obstacle courses. Some of the other tributes are already there in a circle, surrounding a scary strong woman.

Trainers approached Blaze and Heather to put their district numbers on their backs. The pair then add themselves to the circle and discover that the woman is Atala, the head trainer. It's then that Heather realizes something. While she won't be showing any of her skills, the Careers will. This would be a great opportunity to find out about their weaknesses. Right now, they're all present. Babyface and Pretty boy from District 1, Uptight girl and Arrogant boy from District 2, along with Hudson and Blue from District 4. Their names suited them so it was easy to remember it.

Arrogant boy smirked at Heather when she sat next to him. He was clearly expecting her to squirm in fear and move away from him, but obviously, she couldn't give him that satisfaction. Instead, she smirked back at him and gave him a wink for good measurements. His eyes widened in shock and Heather was having a hard time trying not to laugh at him.

When the rest of the tributes arrived, Atale launched into a lecture about how the next few days are going to work. She explained how there are experts in each station, how they can do whatever they want and to not fight with each other. If they wanted to fight then they could just ask a trainer. As predicted, the Careers headed out straight to the weapon station the moment Atala dismissed them. All except the boy from 2.

He came up behind Heather and whispered in her ear, "You're mine."

"What?" She snapped her head back at him. "I mean, I get it that I'm beautiful and all but you do realize that this is never gonna work out."

"Huh?" The poor guy was confused.

"Oh, are you deaf? I'm so sorry, I didn't know," Heather placed her hand on her chest and tried to look as sorry as she could.

Soon his confusion turned into anger, just like she hoped. "I didn't mean it like that you dumb bitch."

"Dumb?" She gave him a sweet smile. "Funny you should say that since I'm the one playing with you. After all, isn't this a game?"

Heather walked away from him then turned around. "By the way, I know what you meant. But let me ask you this question first, do you really think that you could kill me?"

Once again, Heather strolled away from him and went to the shelter-making station. The female tribute from 8 and the male tribute from the 9 were already there. Heather decided that she should focus on survival skills for the day. It's better to not draw attention to herself again. As much fun as she had messing with Arrogant boy, it's safer for her to stay low.

"Here's the thing about shelters, you can't survive more than three hours without them in a harsh environment," the instructor began explaining. "One of the most important things that you should make sure of when you're making a shelter is that you have to make it waterproof and dry. Your resources may not be enough to do so but there are techniques that can help. Like hoisting your bed or finding coverage. Some of the best materials you could use are…"

He then went on and on about the topic. From different scenarios to the dangers you come across if you don't have a shelter and how to avoid them. Finally, he began to explain the process of shelter-making. Damn, the man could talk. After the lecture was over, he gave them different materials and had them make a shelter.

Heather was just given a few blankets and a couple of fake plastic sticks. The trainer told her to pretend the blankets were a bunch of leaves and the plastic sticks were wood sticks. She immediately got to work and started to structure the wood stick into a trapezoid shape. It was a lot harder than it seemed. The sticks kept falling apart until she found the perfect angle that made them stand. She then put a ridgepole over it and continued constructing the shelter. When she was done, she placed the blankets over the sticks. It was safe to say that the trainer was impressed with her work.

After that, she went on to the fire station, the camouflaging station, knot tying, and hammock-making. Fortunately, she didn't have any problem with any of those skills. Halfway through the day, the Gamemakers showed up at the training grounds to observe the tribute. They mostly either focus on their food banquet or the Careers.

The tributes didn't go to their district floors when it's lunchtime. Instead, there was a dining room that's reserved for that time. Quietly, Heather took her plate full of food and sat down in a corner of the room. All of the tributes expect the Careers sat apart from each other. She could feel Arrogant boy's eyes on her and when she caught him in the eyes, she smiled at him but he just glared at her.

The female tribute from 5 sat next to Heather. She smiled at her, "Hi, I'm Iry."

"Heather," she said with a cool look.

The girls ate in silence, side by side. Heather could feel the girl shifting nervously next to her, as if she wanted to say something but couldn't bring herself to. Finally, Iry opened her mouth. "Hey, I was wondering if you would like to form an alliance with me?"

"Oh," Heather thought about it. There's no doubt that it would be nice to have someone by her side. Two is better than one after all, but Heather felt like this should be something that she had to do alone. "I-I don't think this is a good idea."

"O-oh, I-I see," Iry's eyes saddened.

"I'm sorry," Heather said.

"No, no, it's okay," Iry replied rather too quickly.

Regardless of Haymitch's warning of staying away from the stations that Heather was good at, she couldn't help. She needed something to cheer her up after rejecting Iry's offer. The test of the edible plants and insects was a joke that Heather passed in a blink of an eye. It amazed the instructors on how fast she did them.

She also went over to the med station, but she didn't stay there for a long time since she already knew everything that was being taught there.

The rest of the day, Heather spent it in the navigation station and water-finding. To her, those were the most important skills. How can you find water without knowing where you're going?

Dinner upstairs was quiet. Nobody spoke except for Nola asking Blaze and Heather how the training went. They both muttered a silent 'good' and when things got too awkward for Heather excused herself from the table.

The next day was the day Heather was looking forward to the most. It was time to put those Careers in their places. She quickly got up from her bed and dressed up in clothes similar to yesterday's. Like the day before, she found Haymitch the only one in the dining table, and he didn't like the way she grinned that particular morning.

"Morning, Haymitch!" She greeted him brightly.

"I don't know what you're planning, but it better not be something that will get you brutally killed in that arena," He warned her.

"What?" Heather exclaimed dramatically. "Why would I do such a thing?"

As usual, Haymitch ignored her.

Back in the training grounds, Heather walked straight to the axe throwing area. Which was coincidentally where the Careers were at. At first, they were shocked at the fact that someone from the lower districts would dare to approach them. Then the insults began. They made jokes about District 12, Haymitch, and her parents. The last one felt like a jab to her side, but she stayed strong through it and continued to listen to the trainer's instructions. She knew what she was getting into and if there was something that she hated the most, it was losing.

When the trainer finished demonstrating throwing the axe, he told them to feel free to practice. Heather went to pick an axe, a hand shot out and grabbed her wrist. Lo and behold, it was Arrogant boy.

"Let go," Heather told him, looking bored.

"You think you can ignore us?" He taunted her.

"Ignoring you?" Heather laughed. Before he could tighten his grip on her wrist, she opened her hand and twisted her wrist out of his hand with ease. "For me to ignore you would mean that you'd have to exist in the first place."

"Who do you think you are?" Babyface came forward and stood in front of her angrily. "You're nothing special, let me tell you that. You're just a piece of dirt that we're going to get rid of very soon."

"Well, it seems that I'm a piece of dirt that you're threatened by," Heather gave a sweet smile. "Otherwise, why would waste time on someone as worthless as me?"

The cheeks of Babyface grew red, but Heather could care less. She grabbed an axe, stood in the proper stance, and threw the axe with all her might. It hit bullseye which left the Careers speechless. Heather herself was surprised at her luck but didn't show it on her face.

Heather continued to practice, moving farther from her target each time. She didn't always hit the bullseye, and the Careers made sure of informing her whenever it didn't hit. What a bunch of imbecile children.

Uptight girl from District 2 stuck out her leg to trip Heather when she was done. Her plan didn't work as Heather just twirled around her leg.

Heather's next stop was the hand to hand combat. She already knew how to do it because Aeson taught her that for her safely. She lost to the trainer the first two times on purpose but finally defeated him in the end.

The ropes course looked difficult but Heather managed to do them thanks to her lightweight. The Careers were also there, and Heather raced the girl from 2. She won, and that pissed off the Careers which pleased Heather. By that point, some of the Gamemakers began to take notice of her.

Soon enough, it was time for lunch and Atala called out for the tributes to move into the dining room. When Heather went to get a pudding from the buffet, Babyface accidentally on purpose smashed a piece of cake in Heather's face.

Everybody stopped what they were doing. Pretty boy and the tributes from 2 started snickering. The others were shocked and some ignored what happened.

"Oh, I'm so sorry. I didn't see you there. It was like you were invisible to me," the girl couldn't be more obvious. She was referring to what happened at the axe throwing station.

Heather's lips curled up in a smile, "Oh that's okay."

The smirk faded from Babyface's lips, "A-are you sure?"

"Absolutely," she grinned. "I mean, look at the bright side, my face smells like cake now. The only thing that you should feel sorry about," she pulled her finger and tasted the cake in her face, "is that you wasted such a good strawberry cake. Besides, I understand, some of us can't help but be clumsy."

By now, the tables have turned and some tributes were laughing at Babyface. Including the pair from District 4.

"Just be careful out there in the arena, Babyface. Don't want you to get all klutzy."

Babyface gave Heather a murderous glare, "My. Name. Is. Lavender."

"Are you sure? I mean you look and act like a baby," an innocent smile appeared on Heather's lips. "Besides, lavenders are known for their grace and calmness. So far, I don't see you being like that. Not now, not in the future."

And just like that, Heather left the room.

Afterwards, Heather was having problems practicing with the spear. The girl from 4 approached her.

"Hi, um, I just came here to tell you that I'm sorry about what happened earlier," she said. "Hudson and I weren't on board with it but we were outvoted."

"That's okay," Heather said. "I understand why you're still sticking with these idiots."

She chuckled, "Thanks, I'm Blue."

"I know, I'm Heather," Heather picked the spear again and failed to hit the dummy. She groaned in frustration.

"I know," Blue replied. "Do you need help with that?" 

Heather looked at Blue closely. She didn't seem like the others and her eyes weren't filled with loath like Lavender's does.

"Sure, but won't those guys get mad at you or something?"

"Oh, no, they're too busy watching Mason and Lavender fight over who's going to kill you," Blue said this as if it meant nothing which was exactly how Heather felt when she heard this. It was hilarious, they still think that they can kill her. "Let me see your stance."

Heather put her foot towards her target. Her opposite hand held firm onto the spear, aiming properly.

"Ah, I see the problem now. You have to bend your knee a little," Heather followed Blue's instruction. "Now, try and throw the spear."

Heather tossed the spear straight at the dummy and hit it in the stomach. She grinned and turned to Blue but she was already going to her group. Heather smiled at her retreating form then picked another spear.

The thirteen- year old boy from 8 was with Heather when they were in the slingshot station. Every now and there, he would look at her with curiosity clear in his hazel eyes but Heather would ignore him. It wasn't because it was too painful for her to look at him and know that he would be in a death game. It was because he reminded her of Rusty. They looked nothing alike, but it was the way he behaved. Todd, at least that's what she thought his name was. Todd was shy, just like Rusty, and when he smiled, it was exactly like how her childhood friend did.

* * *

Atala yelled at all the tributes to stop what they were doing and come have a try at the gauntlets. She explained how the obstacle worked. They had to jump from platform to platform that went up and down. To make it more difficult, trainers were going to throw padded clubs at them. The point of the course is to see how fast you could do it.

Atala also mentioned that the fastest tribute to do it was Cashmere from District 1 in forty seconds. This made Lavender smug.

They stood in a line according to their district number with the male in the front. All the Careers passed with difficulty, and the other tributes either fell or took a long time to finish.

Coming in contact with a club, Blaze dropped to the ground which made the Careers burst into laughter. Heather immediately rushed to his side and checked over his body for any bruises.

"Heather, it's okay. I just fell, you don't need to worry about me," he said just as Atala blew the whistle at her.

Heather glared at the Careers. They acted like they were scared at her with their stupid gestures. She rolled her eyes at them and stood at the starting line. The point of the gauntlets wasn't passing through it, it was how fast you could do it.

The tributes, including the Careers, depended on their sight when it came to it. But Heather wasn't going to do that, she wasn't going to use her sight. She was going to use both her eyes and ears. When she was fifteen, she touched a dangerous plant that burned her and made her blind. At that time, she was collecting some herbs for her father from the meadow then she saw a weed that wasn't familiar to her. Curiosity got the best of her and she went ahead to check it.

Her punishment for doing so was blindness for a year. She was depressed at first but eventually, she got used to it. She would walk with a cane, and rely on her hearing to know where she was going. Blindness didn't stop her from training in the forest either, but she was only allowed to go if either her brother or Mr. Everdeen was with her. There she would walk barefoot, and it actually helped. Walking barefoot made her feel closer to nature too. Heather could feel what was happening which was awesome. Sometimes, she could sense things that the others couldn't see with their eyes because they were hidden from sight. She only got her sight back three months before the reaping, but at times, Heather would wear a blindfold because she missed the feeling of being blind.

A beep sound rang on, indicating for Heather to start. In a flash, she jumped to the first platform then went on to the other. She heard the sound of a club being thrown at her before it got into her line of sight. She avoided it by hurrying over to the other platform. Most of the Gamemakers, the trainers, and the tributes were staring at her in shock as she smoothly escaped all the clubs and finished the obstacle with a flip in the end.

Thirty-six seconds.

That's how long it took her to finish. Before her, the fastest to finish was the girl from 2 that completed it in a minute. The look on the Careers' faces was worth how breathless she was.

Smiling sweetly, Heather moved past them as she went on to her next station.

The following morning, she revisited all the important stations such as shelter-making, water-finding and navigation. Soon enough, it was time for the private session with the Gamemakers. Being the last open might have its advantages but that didn't stop from being apprehensive. Of course, she didn't share her feelings openly, mainly due to the fact that Careers sat next to her.

Heather already knew what the Careers were going to do after she had observed them these past two days. Pretty boy will probably wield that scythe of his as if he was the angel of death. Lavender will show off her knife-throwing skills and knowledge of edible plants. Talk about a copycat. Arrogant boy will display his sword skills and Uptight girl will swing her axes. Hudson and Blue will undoubtedly go on throwing spears and tridents.

Slowly, the number of people in the room began to lessen. Normally when she was nervous, Heather would either knit or go talk to her father about it. Since neither of these choices were available, she pointed out her index fingers, pretending that she was knitting. It helped a little bit but didn't cease the problem. When the female tribute from 11 is called, Blaze started to fidget around nervously. Heather reached out and squeezed his hand.

"Thank you," he said, and they stayed like this for a while. Holding hands in silence until it's Blaze's turn. "I'll see you later."

"Good luck," she said.

"You too."

Now, she was alone. Taking deep breaths, she revisited her plans for what she's going to do in the arena. Butterflies danced around in Heather's stomach, and she pushed them all out when they summoned her. It was time to show the Capitol what she was made of.


	5. Chapter 4: The Interview

**Author's note: I want to dedicate this chapter to DeathByBombing, thanks for reviewing and following this story.**

**I hope you like this chapter!**

* * *

All of the Gamemakers' attention was on her as soon as she entered the room. Just like she had planned. The main reason why she showed off some of her skills when she was training was for the Gamemakers to notice her. She knew that they would be ignoring her because they won't expect much from District 12.

Heather headed over to where the bows were and tested out the strings in them. Some strings were tighter, it was ridiculous. Didn't these people know the first thing about archery?

Once she picked a suitable bow, she took three arrows and aimed them at different targets. They all hit the bullseye, and Heather felt self-satisfaction but didn't let it show on her face. It was too early to celebrate.

She then went to the plants' area and separated the poisonous from edible. She also built a small shelter out of the few materials she found which was difficult but Heather made it work. She made a small fire then turned it off by dumping water on it.

Next, she does something that surprises the Gamemakers. Heather took off her shoes then tore a piece of silk from one of the tablecloths and blindfolded herself. Walking towards the table that held daggers, she took five of them.

"You," Heather pointed to the nearest avox she felt standing in the room. "Pick a bunch of dummies and throw them."

She felt the avox walk then he stopped. Afterwards, she heard a dummy being tossed in the air, she instantly threw a dagger at it then heard the sound of fabric being ripped. The avox continued to throw the dummies and Heather hit the target each time.

When she was done, the Gamemakers dismissed her and there was no mistaking the impressed look displayed on some of their faces.

A smile made its way into her face when she got out of the room. She even allowed herself a squeal in the elevator.

Surprisingly, Haymitch was sitting with Nola watching the TV. Of course, he was drinking from his flask.

"Where's Blaze?" Heather asked them.

"In his room," Haymitch answered. "How bad did you screw up?"

"Oh, pretty bad, don't be shocked if I'm killed in the Cornucopia bloodbath," Heather said automatically. She was mainly focusing on the reality show Nola had on. It seemed to be resolved around a woman called Mrs. Pufflemore. Right now, she was currently conflicted about whether she should choose crystal chandelier and starburst chandelier for her new apartment.

"Wait, what?" Nola turned off the TV panickingly which made Heather whine for a bit. "How come?" 

"Oh, relax, Nola," Heather told her. "It was just a joke, I did pretty well. Now can we watch the show, I'm really curious as to what Mrs. Pufflemore will do?"

Nola rolled her eyes at her childish behaviour but turned the TV on nonetheless. Halfway through it, Haymitch went to his room and when the show was over, Heather retired to her own. She made a bath and even took a little nap in it until Nola called her over for dinner. She got out of the tub and then put on a simple long-sleeved yellow dress that reached her mid-calf.

Zedoary and an oddly dressed woman were seated in the dining table. Heather suspected that the woman was Blaze's stylist. That was proven true when Sequoia introduced herself. Heather sat across from Haymitch and next to her stylist.

When dinner was served, only the adults talked. Blaze kept to himself, eating his food silently. Zedoary rambled to Heather about her interview dress, and she kept nodding her head at him even though she had no idea what he was saying. Her attention was snatched by the chicken stew in front of her. On the other hand, she really was getting good at ignoring people. Too bad there was no prize for such a talent.

"Alright, enough with the chit chats," Haymitch declared, shutting over the other conversations happening at the table. "How did the sessions go with you two?"

"They didn't really pay attention to me, but I think I did okay," Blaze spoke up. That fact that the Gamemakers ignored him made Heather feel bad.

"What about you, honeybee?" Haymitch looked directly at Heather.

"It was okay," she simply replied.

"And what do you mean by it was okay?" he continued to question her.

"What I mean is," she leaned closer to his face, put her chin under her hand, and smiled, "It was okay."

He scowled at her.

She grinned at him.

After dinner, they all gathered around the television to watch the scores being announced. Blaze reached his hand for Heather and she held it in her lap. A picture of Pretty boy came up and the number 10 under it. Lavender and the tributes from 2 and 4 pulled off a 9. The others got a score between 5 and 8.

Finally, they show Blaze's face and a 7 under it. Heather smiled at him and the others congratulated him. Then her face is displayed with the number ten below.

Nola lets out a squeal, and suddenly Heather became the centre of attention. Blaze pulled her into a hug.

"At least, one of us has a chance to go back home," he muttered.

Before she could reply to what he said, everyone surrounded her to say their congratulations. Heather looked at Haymitch with a smirk.

"I told you that I did okay," she said.

Haymitch rolled his eyes at her with a small smile on his face. That simple action made Heather feel like her score wasn't the only achievement she accomplished.

* * *

Deadly mutations.

That's what Heather thought was the most difficult thing she'd have to deal with in the Hunger Games. However, she was proven wrong when Effie put her in a dress and 5-inch heels.

She was to practice walking in those monsters of shoes and the ridiculously long dress without tripping.

It was horrible. Heather fell every 30 seconds because either she stepped on the dress or her foot wobbled from how high the heels were, but she always got up. No, she couldn't give up. She wouldn't shame herself like this. If she had managed to make a laughing stock out of Lavender then this had to be a piece of cake.

42 minutes later of falling, Heather got better and so did the other things. She had to practice sitting and how to keep her posture which wasn't so bad. Then came her favourite part. If there was something that Heather was really good at, it was smiling and laughing with her worst enemy even though she was probably picturing herself stabbing them repeatedly in her mind. Her acting skills was something she took pride in.

It was clear that Nola was fascinated by Heather's charisma. They smiled, had small talks, smiled, exchanged fancy jokes, smiled, and talked some more. Overall, the last two hours weren't so bad.

The only problem was Nola. it wasn't that she wasn't a good teacher, but she was just… insufferable. Heather would go as far as saying that she's the most self-centred person she'd ever met.

"Well, I'd have to say, Heather, it looks like the audience won't have any problem liking you," Nola looked at her as if she's supposed to be glad for having her approval. To her horror, Heather gave her a pair of thumbs up.

Before she knew it, it was lunchtime. Still in the garments that Nola forced her in, Heather walked the way she was taught and didn't fall. She didn't even roll up the skirt of the dress.

With the faces that Haymitch and Blaze had, it was safe to assume that their session didn't go well. Blaze looked hopeless and disheartened while Haymitch's demeanour shouted full frustration. Heather took the bottle of wine in the table before he could reach for it.

He gave her a dirty look but made no attempt to take the bottle from her. He knew that doing so would break the deal if he got drunk when he had to train with her afterwards.

Sooner than she had expected, Heather was seated across from the man himself in the sitting area.

"So, honeybee, let me guess, you're gonna be this lovable girl with a great sense of humour," Haymitch said.

"Aww, Haymitch," Heather placed her hand on her heart and wiped a fake tear from her eye. "You really do pay attention."

He rolled his eyes at her, "Here is how this is going to go, I'm going to be the interviewer and you're going to answer my questions."

Heather nodded and crossed her legs until she remembered Effie's warning about leg crossing. He proceeded by asking her questions, both about her life in District 12 and her plans regarding the Hunger Games.

And you know what?

Heather answered honestly. She didn't cover any part of her answers. Sure she sugarcoated some parts, but she still told the truth. She was proud of who she was, and she didn't feel the need to hide a piece of herself. She had nothing to be embarrassed about.

"Well, it looks that you aren't so terrible after all," Haymitch exclaimed after they were done. She smiled in triumph. Coming from Haymitch, it felt like an attainment.

The next morning, Heather found her prep team looming over her sleeping form like they were her stalkers. Literally. She let out a shriek.

After breakfast, her body became a guinea pig that they were experimenting on. They didn't stop working until her hair was trimmed, her body was glowing, and her skin like satin. They didn't much makeup on her to her greatest surprise. Her nails were painted baby blue, a light touch of blue eyeshadow in her eyes, and pink blushes in her cheeks. Her hair was pulled into a low half ponytail with sparking butterflies and white flower petals decorating it. Her lips were painted a rosy pink colour.

It's only when her prep team was done with her that Zedoary showed up with a baby blue chiffon dress. Heather closed her eyes as they put the dress over her naked body.

"Open your eyes," her stylist whispered to her.

It was soft and light. The dress had a keyhole halter top, and the waistband was covered in lace butterflies and flowers. It was nothing like she had expected. It wasn't fancy and elegant. It was simple and beautiful. When Heather looked at herself in the mirror, she felt more like...herself. And she liked that feeling. Nothing could beat the love for oneself, nor its importance.

She put on the shoes on. Thankfully, they were lower than what Nola had her practicing in. Heather did a twirl in the dress, and the prep team oohed and aahed at her.

The prep team was dismissed.

"Ready for your interview?" Zedoary asked her, pulling his arm for her to take.

"Yeah," Heather put her arm around his. "I am."

Once they joined the rest of District 12's crew, Effie flaunted over Heather's dress and makeover. Haymitch just nodded at her in greeting. She went to stand next to Blaze who looked striking in his dark brown suit and grey tie.

The other tributes were already seated in a semicircle. Haymitch patted Heather encouragingly in the shoulder before doing the same thing to Blaze.

Since she was from District 12, Heather was going to be the second last person because the female precedes the male. Many would think that this would be a disadvantage, but not to Heather. Being last meant that she had the opportunity to paint an everlasting impression and perhaps snatch some sponsors from the Careers.

Some of the tributes were fidgeting nervously. They had the right to. After all, every citizen of Panem will be turning onto the interviews. Although Heather was a people's person, she never cared about what people thought about her so crowds weren't a problem for her.

Caesar Flickerman, the host of the interviews, had always frightened Heather as a young girl because of how indifferent he appeared each year. Not only that but he always wore the same suit, had the same hairstyle, and the same smile. The only thing he changed is the colour. This year was all about green. In District 12, an old person is respected because many people there die early. So being old equals to being wise. In the Capitol though, wrinkles aren't appreciated. Capitol citizens have surgeries to appear younger which wasn't something that Heather was fond of. In her mind, people should never be ashamed of their bodies and age. After all, it was part of who they were.

Lavender, looking infuriating in her strapless floor-length lavender dress, was the first to go. If this was her way of telling Heather that she looked like a lavender then she couldn't be more wrong. To her shock and horror, Lavender plays the part of the poor girl which she is anything but. Heather could only assume that her mentor made her act so because of her baby face.

Pretty boy became Charming boy, Arrogant boy became Dangerous boy, and Uptight girl became Cunning girl. Heather had to stop herself a million times from laughing out loud.

Little Todd won over the audience by making them laugh at some of his jokes and puns. Time flashed fast and before she knew it, they were calling her name.

Heather stood up with a small smile on her face. She walked toward Caesar and shook his hand.

"Well, Heather, on behalf of the people, I'm going to say that we were all surprised when we saw you get that ten," Caesar started. "Especially since you're… from District 12."

She had to give to him, he really did look contrite when he said. Heather smiled understandingly. "I understand what you mean, and you don't have to say it like it's something to be ashamed of. If there is anything that my father taught me, it's to never be ashamed of the truth. It's true that District 12 didn't always have the best chances to win the games, but it's not too late to change that. Some truths can never be alternated, but this one? I have the ability to change it."

The crowd was silent, even Caesar looked a bit shocked at her little speech. Then, they started to clap. Heather chuckled then it dissolved into a grin.

"Seems like your father is a wise man," Caesar declared.

"He was," her smile turned into a sad one. The audience along with Caesar realized that her father is dead.

"Can tell us about a little about yourself?" He asked.

"Um, there's not really much about me," Heather began. "I mean, I'm simple and I'm an open book, to be honest. I find joy in the simplest acts such as cooking, knitting and gardening."

"And your family?"

"Well, as you've probably guessed my father passed away. It was last year. His death wasn't anything special, he died in his sleep. I'm just glad that he didn't experience any pain when he died. My mother died a few days after having me. She lost a lot of blood during childbirth. I live with my big brother, Aeson. He's already married and right now they're expecting. His wife could give birth at any moment now. Frankly, I'm a little bit upset that I won't be there with him at one of his most important moments in life."

"I bet he is too," Caesar commented.

"Probably," she agreed.

"What did he say to you after the reaping?"

"He didn't say anything. I didn't say anything. He came and pulled me into his arms. We spend our last minutes with each other hugging. We didn't need to use words. We both knew that I would try my best to come back to him. Finally, when it was time for him to leave, I told him that I love him, and he told me that he loves me. We both wanted to have those words as the last words we hear from each other."

By now, some people in the crowd were starting to cry.

"That's really beautiful," Caesar told her.

"Thank you."

"What do you think is your strength in the arena?" Caesar inquired.

She thought about his question. What was her strength? Sure, she could throw some knives around and she was knowledgeable about natural habitats, but that wasn't enough. The Hunger Games were much more complicated than that. It had the power to drive a person into insanity.

Finally, after a few silent seconds, Heather came up with a proper answer.

"I'm stubborn. I'm really, really stubborn. And I can guarantee you that I will get up every time I'm knocked down. I'm a survivor, and I will make it out alive of that arena."

The buzzer went off.

"And that, you will do," Caesar said. "Ladies and gentlemen, Heather Mildbreeze from District 12!"

The crowd immediately started to cheer for her and chant her name. They didn't stop until Blaze's name was called.

That went well.

* * *

Silence engulfed the room that night. Nobody spoke during dinner, not even Nola. Blaze didn't spare Heather a glance, neither did she. She didn't watch the replays of the interviews and immediately went to her room. Before she went though she asked Haymitch for any last words of wisdom. He warned her and Blaze to escape the Cornucopia bloodbath. Just to be clear, Heather never intended in participating in that event.

That night, she had to go to sleep early since she was to be aroused at dawn so she journey to the arena. That night was one of the many nights where she had to force herself to sleep.

Haymitch and Nola won't be going with them. They will be transferred to the Games Headquarters where they'll be signing up their sponsors. Haymitch would also be in charge of how to deliver their sponsor's gifts. For some time, she had problems coming to terms with that reality. She didn't know whether to trust him on not getting back on her for all those times she teased him and denied him alcohol. Yeah, maybe she shouldn't have said that there won't be consequences for annoying him. Hopefully, he would do the mature thing.

For some unknown reason, stylists were the people who escorted the tributes to the arena. So she wasn't shocked when she saw Zedoary sauntering around her room. He gave her a small white dress to wear. Of course, she wasn't wearing this in the arena. Her clothes for the Games were in a vault under the arena. They went to the roof where a hovercraft was floated. A ladder dropped down and lifted her into the machine. A man approached her to insert the tracker in her forearm, he told her to be still. Heather didn't have to try to hide the pain from showing on her face.

The man disappears then Zedoary climbed into the hovercraft. During breakfast, he attempted to have a small conversation. However, after not receiving a response from her, he gave up.

The trip took about two hours. Indicating that they were near the arena, the windows blacked out. This time, the ladder led into a tube underground, where the vaults underneath the arena laid.

Everything in her launch room was brand new. Since arenas tend to be tourist sites for Capitol citizens after the games are done, she would be the only and last tribute to use the room. She showered and brushed her teeth. Zedoary pulled her hair into a tight bun and used the same bandana she had when she was reaped. She looked at him in shock and he winked at her. Then her clothes arrive. They consist of orange pants, a pink tank top that thankfully doesn't show her cleavage, and a black hooded jacket that reached her thighs.

"The jacket's designed to reflect body heat. Expect some cool nights," Zedoary informed her.

Her shoes were light and seemed easy to run in.

Heather felt a cool metallic object around her neck. She looked down to see her mother's necklace. She exchanged a smile with her stylist.

"That's your district token?" He asked her.

"Yeah," She responded. "It used to be my mother's."

"If you don't mind me asking, what is it? It looks like a shell."

Heather chuckled. "It's not a shell, it's a leaf. A gingko leaf to be more specific. Trees that have these leaves tend to live for a thousand years. They're known for their strong endurance."

"Well, it seems like it suits you since you're both stubborn," Zedoary joked, and she couldn't believe it. He actually succeeded in cheering her up.

As they waited for the announcement of the launch, Heather sat on the couch, sipping water. She was clenching Zedoary's hand while doing so. Every second felt like an hour for Heather.

When her nerves got too much for her, Heather pulled her hand from Zedoary and started moving her fingers as if she was knitting.

Zedoary furrowed his eyebrows at her in confusion, "What are you doing?"

"Whenever, I feel nervous, I knit so I'm knitting," she answered while not looking up from her hands.

Finally, A female's voice ranged on, declaring the time for launch.

Getting up, Heather hugged Zedoary, thanked him for everything he had done for her, and went to stand on the metal plate. She waved at him while her platform started to rise.

For a while, all Heather could see was darkness before the harsh glare of the sun greeted her.

Claudius Templesmith's voice boomed out.

"Ladies and gentlemen, let the sixty-ninth Hunger Games begin!"


	6. Chapter 5: The Hunger Games

It was a desert.

The arena was a burning hot desert. So much for a decent arena

Heather found herself between Hudson and the girl from 9, Minty.

Suddenly, there was an explosion. Heather looked at where the female from District 3 used to be. Pretty boy almost fell off his pedestal but he regained his balance. The gong still hadn't gone off, and already a tribute died. This was probably going to be a short Hunger Games. Which was good, the sooner the games were over, the better.

The Cornucopia was a bright pink colour and supplies were spilling out of its mouth. There were all kinds of weapons, survival bags and most importantly, water. Heather knew that she couldn't survive in the desert without these supplies, but she wasn't going to march into the bloodbath.

Then she realized something. After killing the tributes in the bloodbath, the Careers will go hunting for other tributes. Leaving their supplies vulnerable.

The gong sounded.

Heather ran.

Sand was all there was to see, but she still spotted a few plants here and there. Fun fact though, the sand was the same shade as Heather's hair.

She didn't run far from the Cornucopia. Instead, she hid behind the first high mound of sand that came into her sight. She didn't know when the Careers will hunt so she'd have to spy on them for the time being. Sweat started to form around her face from the heat of the sun. Her jacket was attracting the sun's hot rays so she took it off then wrapped its sleeves around her waist.

It's then that she became aware of the fact that her body was displayed on national TV.

Okay, that was exaggerating it. But still, the clothes that she was wearing hugged her body as if it was her second skin. On the bright side, she was in a desert so people could blame her blush on the heat.

Cannons have been going off a few minutes after Heather ran. She was still close to the Cornucopia, and she could hear the cries of agony. A normal person couldn't but Heather used to be blind. Even when she restored her sight back her sense of hearing still surpassed all her other senses.

It was torture. Listening to all the screams and the sound of blades tearing through the human flesh. Heather didn't need to turn around to know what's happening. Her imagination did the job. She sat down, bent her knees, and put her head between them.

The cannon stopped firing. Soon, the sound of hovercrafts was heard, arriving to retrieve the dead bodies.

She knew it was pointless, but she really hoped Blaze was still alive.

Heather sat still, trying to push back the noises she was a victim to earlier. Time became an unknown factor. All she wanted to do was forget. Obliterate the horrors that she was a witness to. Finally, when her mentality developed into a stable cause, she stood up and looked at the Cornucopia.

Blood was splattered all over the ground and so were some of the Careers. She didn't know many died, she wasn't counting how many times the cannon fired.

Lavender and Blue were gathering the supplies. Hudson and the pair from 2 were cleaning gore out of their hands and weapons.

Wait.

Something wasn't right.

Where was Pretty boy?

Now that she thought about it, Pretty boy wasn't always with the Careers. He didn't appear to be close with them during the training sessions either. Heather went through her memories and recalled the times she caught him hanging out with the boy from District 7. She never cared for that knowledge. Perhaps they have formed an alliance with each other.

Heather wondered if she should take a risk and move closer. She couldn't see them clearly and she barely heard parts of their conversation. But she decided against it. Better safe than sorry.

She didn't know how long she had been watching. From what she could observe, they were resting and now they were setting up traps and snares around the supplies to protect. Luckily for her, Heather knew how to deal with them and get to the supplies. Arrogant boy and Hudson covered the traps with sand.

The Careers grabbed their signature weapons and water bottles, then they headed towards the opposite direction of Heather's location.

She waited a while to make sure the coast was clear.

Taking her shoes and socks off, she put them on the place she sat there. Heather winced when her feet touched the ground. The sand almost burned her feet and she had to resist the urge to wear her shoes again. However, that option wasn't a good idea.

She couldn't see the traps, but she could feel them. Walking barefoot would help her sense the snares before they're put into effect. It was the perfect opportunity to put all those times she journeyed through the forest back home barefoot into proper use.

With that thought in mind, Heather raced straight to the Cornucopia. The faster she's done with this, the better.

She stopped when the feeling of the wires neared her. Closing her eyes, she focused on the texture of the ground and what's around it. She was sure that the way she moved seemed as if she was dancing. The thick threads were all close to each other which made it a bit difficult to maneuver. The more close she was to the supplies, the more traps she had to avoid. When she finally reached her destination, a wire almost caught her foot but thankfully, she managed to escape it.

Heather opened her eyes, amazed at the sight of the supplies. She let out a breath of relief then got instantly to work. She took the biggest back bag and searched through it. There was bread, dried fruits, gelatin, a compass, a thin sleeping bag, and other things that she didn't need. She took out almost all the contents in the bag.

Only the compass and the sleeping bag were left. Afterwards, she searched for fruits and vegetables that contained a high quality of water. She picked two cucumbers, two tomatoes, two oranges, a bunch of strawberries, celery and two grapefruits then wrapped them in plastic. The next thing she had to do was to grab two bottles filled with water, then she took water purification tablets along with a first aid kit and a tarp.

Subsequently, she found a vest full of knives. Heather reached for it and put it on with a determined expression on her face. Just as she was about to grab the bag and go into hiding, she felt someone's presence near her. No sooner than that, she heard the sound of a spear being thrown at her.

Barely ducking the weapon, Heather met Pretty boy's harsh blue eyes. Without hesitation, she took a knife from the vest and threw it at him. Sadly, the bastard managed to dodge it and the blade hit the sand instead.

Heather had never confronted Pretty boy before. Usually, it was his District partner and the pair from 2 that made all the lewd comments about her. However, unlike Hudson and Blue, he always gave her dirty looks whenever he could. As they say, the silent are always the deadly ones.

Unfortunately for him, Heather knew something that he didn't. The moment he attempted to move towards her, his foot got snagged by the rope hidden in the sand which made him fall into the ground. Immediately after this occurrence, two other twines seized both of his hands. Heather had to applaud Blue for her tricky snares.

Knife in hand, she jumped avoiding the other trap that was still activated. It was an unbelievable sight. All she had to do was plunge the blade into his chest and be over with it, but she couldn't do it. It didn't feel right. She tightened her hold on the knife.

Pretty boy was struggling to get out but the ropes tightly bound him. He didn't appear scared when Heather neared. He wasn't afraid of her, but his eyes were alarmed. It took her a second to realize that he was scared of dying this way, and she was shocked. He was like her. If he were to die, he wanted it to be in a fight.

Still, she couldn't show her emotions to him. She squatted next to his body, trailing her dagger over his forearm and bicep. His fair-skinned arm became infatuated with red scratches yet he didn't grimace. He glared at her. She had no doubt that he hated her at this moment. Annoyed, Heather exhaled and in a flash, she cut all his bindings.

Pretty boy was confused at first but he quickly covered his facial expression with a smirk, "Well, well, well, what do you know? You're not as strong as you appear to be. Scared of a little kill, Flower girl?"

Flower girl? Not that Heather had better nicknames, but she expected more from him.

She rolled her eyes, "No, I just realized that I have better things to do than play with you, Pretty boy. Let's not meet again in the future, shall we?"

After saying that, Heather didn't bother to look at him and just grabbed her backpack, twirled around another snare, and ran towards where her shoes were. She snatched them and continued running. It's when she was in the middle of nowhere that she stopped. Breathing turned into a hard task due to the hot weather. Once again, she lost track of time as she concentrated on performing a function that used to be easy. Looking at her surroundings, there was nothing but sand and rocks. It was a perfect spot for the shelter she was going to build.

But before Heather started to construct it, she sat down and opened her bag to take out the first aid kit. Pulling up her feet, she winced. Her feet looked so red and like they were roasted. Heather grabbed a bottle of cream that helps with burns and began rubbing her feet. After she was done, she placed her stuff near a rock and started to work on a shelter.

She found a low point between rocks and started to dig with her hands. Yep, this was going to take a while to do. It was tiring. Standing under the sun, digging hot sand with her bare hands. When she was halfway through with the trench, a silver parachute fell in front of her. It was a shovel. There was a note attached to it.

Dig up, honeybee - Haymitch

Heather wiped the sweat from her forehead and chuckled. She took the shovel and did exactly what her mentor wrote. Later, she laid down on the ditch to see if it fit her. When it didn't, she placed rocks around the areas that needed to be gouged. After she finished, she piled the sand to form a mound around the three sides of the trench. Then, she dug more around the end so she could be able to get out and get in easily.

Now, all she had to do was cover it with the tarp. She secured it with rocks on all four sides and buried the tarp in the sand.

Heather backed up a little to admire her work. It was perfect, the tarp was hidden by the sand and the entrance to the trench could be easily mistaken for an Escorpelicus's hole. An escorpeclicus is a mutation of a scorpion, courtesy of the Capitol.

By the time she was done with her work, it was sunset. For a deadly place, it was beautiful at that moment. The same didn't apply to her. Most definitely, she was covered in sweat and dirt. The tight bun that Zedoary made became a low ponytail.

Her stomach growled in hunger. She realized how dry her mouth was.

Heather sighed and sat down. Pulling a cucumber and a grapefruit, she ate them and drank a quarter of the water bottler. She had to resist the urge of drinking the whole container. There was a 97% chance that there was no water in the arena, but there was a 3% possibility that there was underground water around the desert plants she saw. Despite this likelihood, she still had to converse her water until she could find a water source. Maybe that could be her plan for tomorrow.

Thoughts of her loved ones began to dominate her mind. Did June give birth yet? How was Aeson coping with her being in the games? Did anything happen to Mr. Everdeen in the mines? Was Katniss watching the games?

The latter was a stupid question. Of course, Katniss was watching the games. But, Heather couldn't bear the thought of it. Even though she didn't kill Pretty boy, she still had to at least kill one person to survive. On the other hand, Heather didn't want Katniss to view her as a heartless killer.

Trying to cheer herself, she thought about how the Careers reacted when they saw how she broke into their safe haven. If they were smart, then they would change their location.

The anthem started to play as night fell. After it was done, pictures of the fallen were being displayed in the sky. This included the pairs from 3, 5, 6, 9, and 10. There were also the females from 7, 8, and 11 and finally, Blaze.

Fourteen people have died.

Ten were left alive.

Guilt ate Heather when she saw Iry's face in the sky. Her mind started to wander to the possibility of her being alive right now if Heather agreed to be her ally. However, she had to stop thinking like this. What's done was done and it was too late to change the past.

Then, there was Blaze. It's true that they weren't close but she couldn't help but feel sadness and remorse.

Next, Heather listed all those that were alive. There were the Careers, herself, the male tributes from 7,8, and 11. She was shocked when she came to the realization that Todd survived the Cornucopia bloodbath and that he didn't run into the Careers when they were scouting for more tributes to kill.

Heather took off her bandana and hair band. She ran her fingers through her hair, massaging her scalp. The wind started to pick up and it blew her hair in her face. She proceeded to pull her hair into a side ponytail.

Soon, the moon replaced the sun, and the temperature lowered. That change caused Heather to shiver, and she immediately wore her jacket. To her relief, warmth spread around her body with the exclusion of her legs. When she yawned, she finally gave into the urge of sleep and got inside the trend

It was suffocating inside the trench so Heather had to face the hole while sleeping in order to breathe properly.

The next morning, she was awoken by the bright rays of the sun. The sight of the sun hurt her eyes, making her close them in the process of getting out of the hole.

It was a bad idea to stay in one place for too long, Heather watched enough Hunger Games know that. Using the shovel, she moved the sand away from the tarp then folded it and put it back in her bag. She did the same thing to her sleeping bag.

Just like yesterday, she took off her jacket to avoid the heat of the harsh sun and braided her hair. Ready for her upcoming adventure, Heather used her compass to direct her way through the desert.

Suddenly, a scream erupted through the arena. Without thinking, Heather ran towards the source of the scream.

There, she saw Flint, the boy from District 11, pinning Todd down in the ground. He was about to kill him.


	7. Chapter 6: Todd

**Author's Note: Sorry if I haven't published in a while, it's just that I had exams this week and I had to study. **

**Anyhow, here is your update. I hope you enjoy today's chapter **

* * *

Having his sister competing for her life when he's about to be a father wasn't something Aeson thought he would go through. The moment her name was called he swore that his heart skipped a beat. His body was tense while Heather walked bravely up to the stage. June squeezed his hand tightly as Heather and Blaze shook hands.

No words could have described how Aeson felt when he went to see her at the Justice building. His feelings were so mixed up, he didn't know what emotion to use. He wanted to tell her that he was proud of her for standing strong in front of the crowd. He wanted to beg the Peacekeepers to take him instead of his sister. He had lost his mother, his father. Why is the world so cruel that it had to take Heather from him as well?

He wanted to tell her that it was okay. Everything was going to be alright. It took him a second to realize that it was he who needed to hear those words. He wanted to tell her that it was okay if she was afraid because she'll always have him in her heart. He would love her no matter what. No matter what happens. No matter who she becomes.

A flash of auburn came into his vision before two small yet strong arms wrapped themselves around his waist.

Heather.

She was in his hold yet he already started to miss her.

He didn't need to say anything to show her his feelings. This was Heather. She had always understood him better than he did himself. It was not different than that time she made him acknowledge his crush on June. Heather didn't need to be told about his love for her, she needed to be shown. So, he pulled her tightly to his chest. Purposely putting his hand on her neck, feeling her pulse. There was no guarantee that he would be able to do this again.

Aeson couldn't understand why a person like Heather would get picked. She was the most kind-hearted person he knew. She was so selfless, sometimes it was hard to believe that a person like her existed. Like that time when Travis Reid, Rust's main bully and the boy Heather detested the most, fell from a tree and hurt his arm. Heather was the one who took care of him. Though her eyes twinkled in amusement whenever he winced in pain, she kept working professionally on his arm. Or that time at the age of thirteen, she starved herself and gave all her food to the Seam's young women, the ones their head Peacekeeper took advantage of and slept with, so they would stop doing so. She'd stuff her clothes with pads so he and their father won't notice her weight loss, but eventually, they did.

Maybe it was for the best. The world didn't deserve someone as sweet and compassionate as her. She looked innocent in her dress. Aeson doubted that she would look like that again if she won the Games. So, he savoured that moment.

Two Peacekeepers came to escort her to the train. She looked at Aeson. Her face was unreadable, but her eyes radiated sadness

I love you, she called out.

Without knowing it, he uttered the words back to her. That night was the first night he cried since his father died. The first time he cried in front of June. The first time he cried without Heather by his side, holding and comforting him.

Aeson knew what District 12's costume for the Tribute Parade. Everyone did. What he didn't expect though, is the black hair that sprouted out of Heather's head. Equally, her face had black dust smudged around her forehead, cheeks and nose. Still, she made it look good. Her smile brightened his room. Instead of focusing on the tributes with the most exquisite costumes. The Capitol people should look out for the ones who have the most beautiful smiles.

Things in District 12 have never been worse. Right after the Tribute Parade, there was an explosion in the mines. Killing many coal miners and destroying the coal with them. Not a single one of them survived. It also didn't help that the due date for the coal to be delivered to the Capitol had passed. At this rate, the only way District 12 won't die of starvation is if they won the Hunger Games.

And what do you know? This year, District 12 did stand a chance in winning.

For the first time since forever, the people of District 12 started to have hope of winning when they saw Heather's training score. It was a big fat ten. Then there was her interview. The way she had the audience go from admiring her to feeling sorry for her to idolizing her again was gold. It brought joy to them to know that this year, they would stand a chance against the richer districts.

While he could follow his sister's movement on the TV, it didn't bring comfort to Aeson as he couldn't tell what she was feeling on the screen.

The only time he was able to was when she defeated the boy from District 1. Although she didn't show it on her face, she was hesitant about killing him because of her morals. If it was in a fight then she won't have hesitated but the boy couldn't fight her because of his bindings. His helplessness made her set him free.

However, because of this, people started to doubt Heather's odds of winning. They started to think of her as a weak being, calling her a hypocrite. There were many times that he wanted to punch those bastards, but he'd remember what his father always said.

Violence was never the answer.

The second day of The Hunger Games, Aeson and June were about to go to the Seam so they could visit Blaze's mourning family. Before they went, Aeson opened the TV to check on Heather, and then he saw a scene he'd never forget.

Heather threw a knife so fast that you could miss it in a blink of an eye towards the boy from District 11 who was pinning down the boy from District 8, he was about to kill him. This moment was familiar. The way the boy from 8 was about to die was similar to how Rust was killed. Undoubtedly, this triggered Heather.

The knife hit him straight in his head. The older boy froze, then collapsed on the sand. The cannon fired. The little boy underneath him took advantage of the situation and the dead boy off him. He looked around to see who attacked his assaulter.

When Heather revealed herself to the little boy. His face paled in fear.

"P-Please don't kill me," he begged.

"No, I'm not going to, I promise," she said anxiously. The boy still continued to cower away from his sister as she neared him. "Look, I don't intend on hurting you. You're safe with me. I promise."

Heather lifted her pinky out for the boy, and slowly, he began to approach her. Soon, their pinkies locked together, sealing the promise Heather made.

"Okay," the boy said.

"Thank you," she smiled at him. Aeson felt his heartbeat in ease at that simple action. "Do you want some water?"

Before he could reply, Heather took off her bag and pulled out a bottle. The look in his eyes expressed thirst, and when she handed it to him, he drank half of it.

"Why are you helping me?" The boy asked. Aeson knew why, and he was guilty for feeling angry at his sister. He wanted her to keep going. To leave the boy behind and fend for herself. To be selfish and survive. But it was no use. She was just like their father.

Heather ignored his question. She placed her hands on the boy's cheeks and rubbed the purple spots below his eyes, "When was the last time you slept?"

"I couldn't," he answered. "I was afraid that the Careers would find me and kill me."

"That's understandable," she spoke softly. "How about we get away from here then you can sleep?"

The boy hesitated in his reply.

"Todd, I gave you a promise and I intend on keeping it," Heather told him.

Finally, he agreed. They walked away from Flint's corpse just as a hovercraft arrived to retrieve it. Under a sand dune's shadow, they sat down, seeking a shield from the sun. Todd laid his head on Heather's lap and slept immediately.

Aeson watched as his sister stroked Todd's hair as he breathed steadily. It reminded Aeson of the times his mother would do the same to him.

I hope you know what you're doing, Heather, Aeson thought.

* * *

Todd awoke to the sound of the cannon firing. Heather was thankful for that. Not that someone died, but that Todd woke up. If he had continued to sleep anymore, he wouldn't be able to do so again during nighttime.

At one point, Heather replaced his pillow from her lap to her jacket so she could start digging a new shelter.

Now alarmed, he looked at his surroundings before remembering where he was, and who he was with. Still, that didn't stop the surprised look from appearing on his face when he saw her. He probably thought that she'd abandoned him.

Heather wanted to be offended at such an assumption, but she couldn't blame him. He didn't know why she could save him. When he asked her that question, she couldn't tell him why. The memory was too painful.

Then, there was also the realization that Flint was her first kill. The fact that she took a real person's life was hard to grasp by. Someone's son, someone's brother. Both anger and mortification consumed her and she poured all her feelings into the shovel as she dug.

"What are you doing?" Todd inquired.

"Digging our shelter," Heather watched in amusement as his eyes widened at the word 'our'. She placed the shovel down and neared him. She saw how his body tensed the moment she sat next to me. "Let me check your wounds."

There were several bruises around his neck and wrists. They weren't that serious, but the colour purple made them evident in his skin. Grabbing her bag, she took out the first aid kit. She smudged her fingers with a vitamin K cream and mixed it with essential oil to smooth the pain. Todd obviously expected it to hurt when her fingers came in contact with the bruised skin but was soon met with the realization that it didn't. Unlike her, he didn't get tan because of his caramel colored skin.

After she was done, she pulled out celery and the two oranges. She caught a glimpse of Todd's hungry face as she did so.

"Here," Heather handed Todd the celery to eat first. "Eating veggies will help heal those bruises."

For a while, things between them were quiet. Todd nipped at his food and would look curiously at his newfound companion occasionally. Meanwhile, Heather stared blankly at nothing, wondering about who the cannon fired for. There was a high chance that it was the boy from 7, but she had a strong feeling that it was one of the Careers. Immediately, an image of Blue entered her mind.

"Is your father a healer?" Todd suddenly spoke up, startling her. Heather quickly regained her composure and nodded. "I figured. You looked like you knew what you were doing."

Heather smiled. "Well when it comes to healing bruises, I won't really say that it was thanks to my dad. Don't get me wrong, he taught me most of what I know, but it was actually thanks to my brother."

"How come?" He asked.

"You see, my brother used to like wrestling as a teenager. Obviously, our dad didn't approve of that hobby. So when my brother does get into fights, I'd usually help him hide his wounds," Heather felt nostalgic remembering these memories. Then a question popped into her mind. "Do you have any siblings?

"I have three sisters," he answered.

"No brother?" Todd shook his head sadly. "Does it get lonely being the only boy?"

"Sometimes," he sighed.

Silence enclosed them once again as they peeled their orange. Out of nowhere, the sound of a cannon firing was heard.

"Heather," Todd said in a timid voice. She hummed back. "Why did you help me?"

Heather lowered her food as she wondered if she should tell him the reason. "You," She took a deep breath before opening her mouth, "remind me of someone who's dear to me."

Todd hesitated in asking his next question. He could probably sense her uneasiness. "Who was that person?"

"His name was Rust," she said, and paused. The next words that she uttered were hard for her to say. "He was my best friend. When we were twelve, he was reaped for the 65th Hunger Games."

"I'm sorry."

"It's okay," she said. "So, the tarp is not big enough to cover both of us so we might get squished together."

"A tarp? Why are we using it?"

"To cover the trench I'm digging so no one could spot us."

"Won't it get hard to breathe in there though?"

"Well, would you rather get killed by one of the Careers," the look on his face was enough of an answer for Heather. "Thought so."

For the rest of the afternoon, Tobb watched Heather as she worked through the sand. She could see how not being able to help took a toll on him. So, she gave the shovel to him to do the last touches. Smiling at the way he eagerly took the shovel from her.

Before they knew it, the anthem was playing and they were inside the trench. Pictures of the boy from 7 and Blue were being displayed in the sky. Heather gulped when she saw Blue's face.

Heather didn't know why she was surprised when she saw Blue's face. She knew there was a high chance, it would end up to be her. But, feelings began to consume her once again. It wasn't like Blue and her were friends but they didn't resent each other. In fact, they understood each other the most. Their silent agreement to not be allies nor enemies symbolizes it.

As always, Heather turned out to be correct. Her and Todd did get squished together in the hole. After sparring for a little bit, Todd ended up with the sleeping bag while Heather laid on the soft sand.

"Good night, Todd."

"Night, Heather."

* * *

The following day, they demolished the trench.

Todd stared at the bottle Heather gave him. No doubt, he was feeling guilty because it was the last one that contained water.

"Are you sure?"

"Of course, besides today we're going to search for a water source," she told him, getting her compass out after putting their equipment in the bag.

"How? There aren't rivers and lakes around here," he pointed out.

"I know, silly, but that doesn't mean there isn't water around here."

Last night the sun setted in the west. The Cornucopia was a bit far from that radar so it might have been in the south. The plants were on the opposite side of it meaning that they have to move towards the eastern north.

It didn't take long before sweat began to form out of their bodies again as they walked under the cruel hot sun.

"So, where are we going?" Todd asked.

"Look ahead and you'll find out," Heather replied when she saw the hint of green that they were a few feet apart from them.

Instantly, Heather spotted a familiar yellow-flowered bush and rushed towards it. She inspected their leaves then deemed them unworthy. Next, she looked at the bottom branches. There were a few marble saps coming out of them. She collected a few of those saps, handing one to Todd.

"Don't eat it, just chew on it," She instructed him. "It helps with bad breath."

While she chewed on it, Heather took off her shoes and walked around the area to see which place contained the most water. Unlike last time, the sand wasn't hot, but it was still warm. Along the way, she collected a few herbs that she thought were useful. Throughout doing all of this, she felt Todd's eyes on her.

"Is something wrong?" Heather asked him with a worried tone.

"No, it's just… you seem so happy here," Todd nervously answered.

Heather couldn't help the smile from forming on her face. "Yea, plants do that to me. Especially flowers, they just brighten everything you know. I spend most of my life tending to them."

It was true. Gardening was one of Heather's most favourite jobs to do. To her, plants were everything and she believed that they were the cure to everything as well.

Then, something that never happened to her occurred. Todd smiled at her. It wasn't that he didn't like her, but he couldn't trust and open up to her. And that was okay. They had just met and they were in a game where they were supposed to kill each other.

However, the smile he gave her was all she needed to see to know that she was genuinely a good person he could believe in.

"Um, Heather?"

"Yea?"

"Why did you take off your shoes?"

"So I can find out which area is the moistest."

"Did you find it?"

"Yup, hand me the shove."

Heather didn't have to dig farther than 5 inches before water filled the little hole. Placing the shovel on the ground, she wondered how she could transfer the liquid from the soil to the bottle. Suddenly, she got a good idea of how to do it.

"Todd, give me the bottle," Heather said then, using one of her knives, ripped the fabric from her plants, leaving her calf exposed. She proceeded by dumping it in the hole so it could get soaked with water. Afterwards, she took it out and squeezed the cloth, letting the waterfall into the bottle. For the next few moments, that's what happened. Heather dunked the cloth in the hole then pressed the water out of it after it got wet. This continued on until the hole went dry and the two containers were filled. Taking out the water tablets from her bag, Heather sank them in the bottles.

Now that they were done getting water, Heather and Todd walked away from the plants before they could run into another tribute.

"Thank you," Todd suddenly said.

"For what?" Heather's eyebrows furrowed in confusion.

"For saving my life, for taking me under your wing. I realized now that I never thanked you."

Heather's lips curled up in a warm smile, "You're welcome, Todd."

Then it happened.

Escorpeclicuses began to come out of nowhere. And they were heading directly towards Heather and Todd. Heather, not wasting any second, hid Todd behind her back and threw knives as fast as lightning at them.

There was no doubt that the Gamemakers specifically sent them after Heather and Todd. The only explanation for this is that things were getting boring in the arena and they needed to spice things up. After all, they had an audience to entertain. This realization did nothing but fuel Heather's anger.

At first, the odds didn't seem to be in her favour because there were too many of them. Some of them even managed to get near her feet. Slowly though, she gained the upper hand. For a second, she thought she might win, and she did. Just not in the way she hoped.

Hearing a loud cry behind her, Heather turned to witness an escorpeclicus pull its stinger from Todd's foot. The creature didn't have a chance to move before a sharp blade went through its abdomen.

No, no, no, this couldn't happen to her again.

With the poison taking on its effect, Todd collapsed and Heather kneeled beside him.

"It hurts, Heather, it really hurts," Todd cried.

"Don't worry, everything will be alright. Don't be scared, I'm here," she knew that she was lying but she said it either way. She had to be strong for both of them. She had to be strong because no other person would be. She had to be, she just had to. Even if Todd's face was wincing in pain that she wished to stop. Even if this moment reopened wounds that she didn't get close yet.

"Make it stop," he begged. "Please, can you make it stop?"

"No, no, don't do that to me," Heather pleaded with him, and it took her all her power to stop the tears from falling down her face. " Breathe with me Todd, breathe." 

And that's how they spend Todd's last moments in life. Breathing together until he couldn't do it anymore.


	8. Chapter 7: The Final Day

People dealt with grief and loss differently. Most cry, some bottle up their feelings, and in other cases, they get angry. But Heather wasn't any of those. The tears that have begun to fill her eyes dried up. The tight hold she had on Todd's hand loosen. She had no doubt the citizens of Panem were expecting her to cry. How disappointed they would be now. After all, Heather did nothing but stare at her former companion's corpse. Memorizing every feature of him she could grasp.

It wasn't that she was bottling up her feelings. She just jumped through the other four stages of grief right into acceptance. It wasn't healthy yet it seemed like a good idea to her.

Finally, when the sound of a hovercraft rang through her ears, Heather picked herself, grabbed her bag and left. She walked on with no destination in her mind. She had her water, food, and equipment to build a new shelter. She was back to square one.

What was the point of living?

The world was a cruel place. All people ever did was try to outcompete the other. Show that they were the best. And destroy you if you were a threat to their power. Hunger plagued most of the districts. Then there was the Hunger Games. This was just enough of a reason to give up life.

Why can't she just die and get this over with?

But what would happen to Aeson if she did? Will he move on or become a bitter man like Haymitch. Right now, the latter seemed to make more sense. There was also Katniss and Prim. Those girls looked up to her, and they would completely be destroyed if something were to happen to Heather. She also wanted to show them how she could make it. That anything can be possible if you believed in it. Even if the odds were all against you.

Why did she keep on surviving?

Love.

Love was why she kept on living. Why she kept breathing. Why she couldn't stop believing and hoping. Love was the strongest of all.

Lost in her thoughts, Heather didn't notice the silver parachute until it was in front of her. Cautiously, she knelt and checked the bag. The number eight was written in big bold silver font. She opened it to reveal a watermelon.

With a trembling hand, Heather covered her mouth. The tears made their comeback once again. She didn't deserve this. Not after what happened. Not after she let him die. She started to take deep breaths to stop herself from crying. It was too late though. She had already lost it.

Heather cradled the watermelon like a child as she wept and whimpered.

"I'm sorry I couldn't protect him. I'm sorry it had to end this way. I'm sorry I wasn't enough. I'm so sorry," she silently muttered between the tears.

Time became an unknown factor to Heather while she let herself be human. She didn't care if she was crying in front of a national crowd. Last time she checked, having feelings wasn't a weakness. It just made things harder, and she was alright with that.

After all, what was the point of life if you don't stumble and fall every now and then?

Finally, she regained her composure and wiped her wet cheeks then used the fabric that she tore from her pants to remove snot from her nose. She stared shamefully at the watermelon then looked up at the sky. "Thank you. Just know that I don't deserve this."

All of a sudden, she felt someone's presence nearing her. Heather quickly picked her stuff and went off running. This time, however, she closed her eyes as she was doing this. She could have stayed behind and faced the person bravely. But why should she take someone else's life when one of the Careers can do that to her? Not to mention, she had been out of knives since battling against the escorpeclicuses. Only two knives were left on her vest.

Fortunately, it wasn't as hot as it was before. It was obvious that the sun was going to set anytime soon. Maybe she spent more time crying than she thought. Swallowing her pride and grief, Heather took out the water bottle from her bag and drank about a third quarter of it. Sadly, she couldn't do the same when it came to eating.

In a rush, she began digging rapidly. Slowly, the weather became cold causing Heather to put on her jacket. The fact that she hadn't eaten anything but strawberries that morning, threw knives around until her arm started to hurt, ran, cried, and was currently digging with said ached arm took a toll on her. So it wasn't surprising that sleep wanted to take over her body the moment she laid down in the hole she made.

However, she had to stay awake so she could see the Fallen. That way, she'd be able to know who to track down tomorrow. It has been three days since the games started and already 20 tributes died. All Heather needed to do is find the other remaining three and have them kill each other or do the job herself.

Thankfully, the anthem began to play and soon the faces of those who died followed afterwards. Todd was the first one to be projected which made Heather clench her hand on the material of her sleeping bag. Then it was Uptight Girl along with Hudson. This meant that there was her, Pretty boy, Lavender, and Arrogant boy.

There was only one problem. How was she going to track them down?

All these days, she was careful to not bump into the other tributes and now she had to seek them out. Walking around aimlessly probably won't guarantee her to find them but what else could she do?

A yawn escaped her before she could think farther. And this time, sleep managed to get the best of her.

* * *

When Heather was nine years old, Travis challenged her to a tree-climbing contest. Unlike him, Heather didn't have the privilege to spend her free time playing outside. Instead, she was usually too busy helping around her house. Despite that fact, she accepted his challenge.

And she won. Even though Travis was a better climber then she was.

Heather wondered if she should do something similar to what she had in the past and just wing it. After all, plans have a way of not working out.

Finishing off the last piece of watermelon she cut off, Heather wrapped the rind in plastic and went on demolishing her shelter. And so she began to walk.

She walked with no destination in mind. She walked with hope that this would be the last day. She walked on ignoring the uncomfortable sweat that formed around her body. She never stopped walking.

Until she stumbled upon a sight she'd never be able to erase from her memory.

A few feet away from her was Arrogant boy. He was laying down in a pool of what appeared to be his own blood. Both of his hands were clutching his abdomen as his face winced in pain every now and then. At first, her instinct was to run but then her mind processed the fact that he was harmless. He couldn't see her from where she was standing and he seemed to be weaponless.

Questions soon flooded Heather's mind about the occurrence that happened before she came into the scene. There was only one certainty. Whoever did this to him must've hated him and wanted this to be the slowest most painful death.

Without thinking, Heather started to move towards him. She didn't know what she was doing and she didn't care. All she knew at this moment was that this wasn't right.

The closer she got to him, the more injuries she noticed in his body. There were red scratches in his arms and faces, highlighting his blonde hair.

The second he noticed her approaching, he began to chuckle humorlessly. "Came to see me suffer, huh Flower girl?"

Heather rolled her eyes. "Seriously, what is it with your Careers and calling me 'Flower girl'? And no, I didn't come here to see you die."

"Then why are you here?" he asked with the same hateful tone.

"You're a horrible person," she told him bluntly.

"Gee, thanks. Cause that's what every dying person wants to hear," he replied sarcastically then coughed.

"But you're not that horrible of a person," Heather finished her statement. 

"That's nice of you to say, but this still doesn't answer my question," he continued to look at her in disbelief.

Heather sighed and sat down next to Arrogant boy's laying form. "Look, you deserve a quick painless death. I'm sure you weren't always the bloodthirsty killer, an-"

He cut her off, "Why are you doing this?"

A moment of silence dreaded upon them.

"I don't know," she finally said after agonizing seconds passed. "But sometimes you don't have to have a reason to do something that feels right."

He went on to open his mouth to talk but all that came out was a series of loud coughs. Guilt ate at Heather as she sat there with no idea what to do. She wanted to comfort him like she'd normally do to anyone, but she couldn't bring herself to. Because the one in pain wasn't just anyone, he was supposed to be her enemy to kill, and she wasn't just anywhere. She was in the Hunger games, and people here didn't comfort each other, they killed each other. She was sure that if she was in the same place as Arrogant boy, he wouldn't do the same as her but he would either ignore her (which is unlikely but could still be a possibility) or taunt her.

But Heather wasn't just anyone and she refused to be like the others. So, she carefully took his bloodied hands into her and began caressing them gentling. Thankfully, Arrogant boy didn't protest at what she was doing. It was kind of ironic. A few days earlier, he threatened to kill her yet here they were. Him dying and her by his side, soothing him.

"Gauis," he panted.

"Huh?"

"The guy from 1. He's the one who did this to me. I know that you were wondering about that," he informed her. "You know, maybe you're not that bad."

Heather smiled sadly at him. "You too."

Then, for the second time, she watched as someone took their last breaths.

The cannon fired.

"I didn't even know your name," she muttered.

She looked back and forth between her hand that was covered in blood and the corpse whose blood it belonged to. Leaving shouldn't be hard but for some reason, it is.

Slowly pulling her hands out of his, she got up just as the hovercraft came to pick the body. Heather pushed out hair that was blown into her face, watching the hovercraft take Arrogant boy.

Picking on what she was doing before, Heather continued on walking. Honestly, it was starting to get boring. There was nothing but sand and she couldn't find the two goons from District 1.

Suddenly, she heard a sound of something from the sky. Looking upwards in curiosity, she saw a silver parachute descending towards her. She filed her eyebrows in confusion then went on to inspect it.

In a few seconds, she found herself holding a bow and three arrows.

There was also a not attached to it that said: They're in the Cornucopia - H

Was he even allowed to do that?

Heather was pretty sure the Capitol had some limits for mentors when it came to helping their tributes. Perhaps they allowed him to do so because the games were going to end soon. With her lips in a thin line, she took off her back to pull out a compass. It didn't actually take that long for her to arrive at the cornucopia.

Just as the note said, Gauis and Lavender were standing across from each other in front of the Cornucopia's mouth. They both looked as if they didn't want to be there. This is understandable because the fact that they're from the same district probably meant there was a chance they knew each other. Even if they didn't if they wind out killing the other then they have a hard time facing their district.

Gauis was holding a scythe like he was an angel of death while Lavender had a sword on her. They were staring intensely at each other and Heather had a feeling that they just had a serious talk before she came. They didn't seem to notice her, but that can be partly thanked for the high sand mound that hid her.

Looking at both their faces, Heather noticed how hesitant and nervous it was for them to fight. It was then that she decided to end this right here. It was for the best that she be the one who kills one of them at the very least.

Before the two of them could move a finger, Heather instantly picked an arrow from behind her, moved away from her cover, and she shot at Lavender. It wasn't long before a second one cut through her neck then a third one in her side. A cannon fired as Lavender fell.

Heather must've been too focused on killing Lavender that she didn't notice the fact she used all her arrows.

Gauis looked at her in anger. In a flash, he was on her with his scythe ready to slash her. Heather barely had time to move before it went down on her, she was able to dodge the attack but part of her hair and forehead were cut. Red blood began to drip down her face, causing some problem with her sight.

Gauis went on to attack her one more time but Heather ducked and pushed her leg upwards to kick the scythe out of his hold. She then went on to pull her knife so she could end him yet the odds weren't in her favour as Gauis took advantage of the situation and grabbed her hand so she couldn't harm him.

His hold on her was strong enough that she wanted to cry, but she couldn't. She had to stay strong. Every citizen of Panem was probably watching them, and she had to win this. For Aeson, for Katniss, for Haymitch, and for herself.

Gauis forcefully redirected the blade towards her throat and pushed her down. Heather fought back by placing her hands on his and pushed back as hard as she could.

"Not so strong now, huh Flower girl?" Gauis taunted her.

This triggered Heather. She hated being called weak. She remembered how those merchant kids used to treat Rust, and she refused to let people run her over like that. She was never going to bow down to people who never have good intentions.

She had to stay strong.

She had to fight through this.

She could do this.

With a newfound fuel, Heather used her legs as a way to shove Gaius away from her. Not giving him much of a chance to react, she quickly took out another knife to push it in his throat.

The cannon fired for the third time today.

It was all over.

A few seconds later, Claudius Templesmith's booming voice aroused. "Ladies and gentlemen, may I introduce you to the 69th Hunger Games Victor, Heather Mildbreeze of District 12."

Those were the words she needed to hear before she collapsed.


	9. Chapter 8: The Victor Banquet

**Author's note: I think this is the longest chapter I have ever written. Anyways, there are only two chapters left to the story but don't worry this won't be the last you've seen of Heather. I'm planning on writing a second book called _'Mother'_ which I will be explaining in more detail after I'm done with this story.**

**Anyhow, I hope you enjoy this chapter**

* * *

Haymitch couldn't believe it.

She did it.

She actually did it.

The girl was alive. She was alive and well,...and alive.

It has been a day since it was over, and Heather had been moved to the recovery room. She didn't have any serious injuries, but her wrists were bruised and her forehead was partly cut so they had to sew it. Every dirt on her was scrubbed off until her skin returned to its porcelain state. They also cut her hair which was something Heather's prep team couldn't stop whining about.

During the Games, Haymitch tried to not let his hopes up though Heather defied death again and again. He was pretty sure that she was going to die the moment those escorpeclicuses appeared. However, he decided to believe in her when he saw the way she fought against them. Though that didn't change the fact he lost too much hair over her battle with the blond career boy.

The night she was taken from the arena, Haymitch had a dream Heather was killed followed by dead tributes from District 12 and he was left alone where all his tributes were bound to death. He couldn't sleep for the rest of the night. Instead, he spent it observing Heather in her sleep. Watching her breath helped with his paranoia but it didn't stop it.

Currently, the doctor was checking up on her. He was performing basic tests on Heather and it seemed like she was acing it. The doctor came to talk to Haymitch afterwards.

"How is she?" He immediately asked.

"Ms. Mildbreeze is, in fact, well. Her recovery is going on marvellously. However, I would recommend that she start eating something solid. It has come to my attention that she had been swallowing nothing but fluids," he told him.

"I will try my best to encourage her," Haymitch thanked the doctor then looked worriedly at Heather as she played with her short hair and new bangs. Later on, he ordered an avox to tell the kitchen staff to not give Heather any soup.

Hearing a knock on the door, Haymitch didn't even bother to get up and open the door. He already knew who was on the other side. Chaff entered the room without care and went on to sit next to Haymitch.

He looked curiously at him, "Aren't you supposed to be celebrating?"

Haymitch sighed, "How can I when she's laying there?"

"But she is alright, no?" Chaff asked.

"Yes, but what if she's not the same person?" Haymitch wondered out loud then he realized how stupid he sounded.

"We're all not the same person after the games," his companion pointed out.

"I know. I'm just worried about her. She hasn't uttered a single word after she came here," Haymitch looked down at his lap as if the answer was there. He couldn't recall a moment where he felt this helpless before. He finally achieved his unreachable dream of having a kid from his district win. But now that it came true, he had no idea what to do afterwards. He was so new to this.

A bottle of beer came into his sight as Chaff held it out for him. The urge to take it was strong yet Haymitch resisted it as best as he could. Heather might need him at any moment and he couldn't let her down. Gulping, he shook his head at Chaff.

Chaff nodded his head understandingly at him. "I came here to tell you that I'm leaving tonight. Seeder had already left with Cecelia."

If their tributes were eliminated, mentors could go back to their districts. Some, like Chaff, choose to stay behind for whatever reason, and others were prohibited from leaving since they were to escort a Capitol citizen to the victor banquet.

Suddenly, prior to Haymitch's response, they heard a crashing sound coming from Heather's room. Wasting no time, Haymitch hurriedly ran to the source of the sound. He saw Heather pounding desperately on the door while she cried.

"Get me out of here. It's too hot. It's too hot," he heard her say. He quickly realized that her room temperature must have reminded her of the desert heat.

Heather jumped into his arms the moment he let her out. Her tears wetted his shirt but he didn't care and held her as she cried. Stroking her hair, she calmed down yet she still stayed in the sanctuary of his hold.

"Haymitch?" he hummed back. "Can you stay with me? I don't want to be alone."

"Of course, I will, honeybee," he told her. "You want to go outside."

He felt her nod in his chest. His hand was wrapped around her shoulder as they walked into the waiting room. Similarly, she had her hand around his waist. An avox came to give Heather a tissue to clean her nose and wipe her dried tears.

Spotting Chaff in the coach, Haymitch could feel Heather tense. However, she didn't stop walking alongside him. Truthfully, Chaff didn't appear to be interested in Heather but Haymitch knew that this was all an act. Right now, all of Panem was wondering about the real Heather. While there were moments where Heather showed her true self in the Hunger Games, the times she pretended to be a cold killer seemed real that some people believed it.

"I understand if you hate me," Heather spoke up, startling both mentors.

"I don't hate you. I did get mad at you, but I don't feel any hatred towards you" Chaff revealed to Heather. "In fact, I think you did the right thing."

"Are you sure?" She hesitantly inquired.

Chaff smiled warmly at her. "Positive."

A beam broke on Heather's face. "Thank you."

It was obvious that Chaff took a liking to Heather as he looked at her every once in a while.

Heather must've noticed the way Haymitch looked at the alcohol contained bottle because the next time she opened her mouth, she said, "You know, you don't have to hold back for me."

"Hmm," he looked at her in confusion.

"You can drink if you want," Heather said as if it was no big deal. "I mean, our deal is done, isn't it?"

The next thing Haymitch knew, Chaff was thrusting a bottle toward him and then, they were both drunk. Heather didn't comment on them when they became rowdy. She just played quietly with the fabric of the dress she was wearing. At some point, Chaff noticed how curious she was about what they were drinking.

So for the next few moments, Haymitch and Chaff laughed at the faces Heather made while drinking the spirits. She did become a little drunk, and he discovered she was a sleepy drunk. Nothing that serious. For the rest of the time, they kept on giggling and laughing at things that didn't make sense.

Throughout it all, Haymitch was able to catch glimpses of the old Heather. That was all he needed to witness.

* * *

"No, no, no!" Zedoary whined. "This isn't right at all."

Heather groaned as her prep team removed her makeup yet again because he didn't think it suited her dress. The fact that she had a hangover from last night wasn't helping. She was never drinking with Haymitch and Chaff again.

"Why didn't you guys decide on my makeup while I was resting," Heather asked.

"Zedoary was still working on your dress," Azalea answered as she worked on her arm. Temporary tattoos, which her prep team promised to remove afterwards, were being drawn in her arms and neck. Although she had a hard time breathing when they were doing her neck, it wasn't much worse than having her body hair removed.

It did make sense for Zedoary to work all these days on her dress. After all, the result was quite astonishing. Not to mention, he was a bit of a worrywart at times. However, Heather still didn't get over the fact that there were only two things that her dress consisted of. Leaves and flowers.

"A flower for every fallen tribute," Zedoary explained.

It seemed that the nickname 'Flower girl' had stuck with the Capitol. It was also something her stylist thought she'd look good in. It certainly turned out to be true when Heather looked at herself in the mirror. Her hair, now barely reaching her shoulders, was decorated with flower petals. Her top was strapless. The flowers in her dress were separated by branches and heathers which was something she found appealing. Unlike her previous gown, this one reached her knees.

As for her bare legs, they were covered with laced socks that also contained leaves and flowered. Her heels were silver and 3 inches.

Finally, they were done with her makeup and Zedoary actually approved of it this time.

They didn't cake her face like last time and kept it simple. She shockingly looked so innocent that it seemed hard to believe she won the Games. After checking her reflection in the mirror, Heather turned towards the others who were looking at her as if she was some sort of ghost that wasn't real. Silently sobbing, Cerise went on to hugging Heather tightly and it wasn't long before the others joined.

Their behaviour towards her wasn't surprising at all. Ever since she won, they have been acting rather emotionally to the extent where Heather thought they were all pregnant.

"I'm so happy that you're alive," Cerise muttered.

"Me too," Heather replied silently and hugged them back.

After they let her go, Zedoary came forward to hold Heather as well. "You can do this."

It was only when she felt something metallically cold that she looked down at her neck. "You kept it," Heather cupped the leaf charm of the necklace to observe it.

"Of course, I did. It was your mother's," Zedoary responded.

Heather thanked him and followed them as they met Haymitch and Nola in the elevator. All of them chatted animatedly except Heather and Haymitch who stayed quietly behind them. When it was time to leave the elevator, Heather took the hand her mentor offered her.

When the anthem was over, Cerise, Azalea, and Sorrel were the first to be presented. They bask in the attention as the crowd greeted them. Next is Nola who behaved similarly to Heather's prep team. Heaven knows that she never thought her district would win this year. Zedoary received a big round of applause when it was his turn. Apparently, the dress she wore for her interview was a big hit.

Usually, the mentor would go on first then it would be the victor's turn. However, Haymitch stood on with Heather as they faced the audience together. The crowd let a deafening cheer when they saw her. True to her character, Heather waved and grinned at the attention she was given, holding onto Haymitch's arm for mortal support.

Caesar Flickerman managed to calm down the noises while Haymitch escorted Heather to the big ornate chair in the centre of the stage. It was designed for the victor where they'll watch a recap of their games.

After a few jokes, Caesar turned to Heather and took her hand in his.

"Heather, my dear, how have you been?" He asked her softly.

She smiled at him even though she hated the way he was talking to her, "I've had better days."

"That's understandable. Do you think you'll be able to go through with the recap?"

Heather silently nodded, and that was the crew needed to see before the show started.

Whoever got to direct this year's recap was lucky. Fitting four days into three hours won't have been hard. The first hour or so focuses on the pre-arena days. The reapings, Tribute Parade, the scores, and the interviews. Luckily, Heather got to learn the names of the tributes from District 2. Mason Wellstone and Sadie Heavensmith.

Then came the hard part. The first scene of the arena was that of the girl from District 3. Apparently she was the cause of the explosion because she let go of a circular object which appeared to be her district token. The Cornucopia bloodbath was exactly what Heather thought it to be. As soon as the countdown was done, each of the Careers ran to the weapons and went on killing the weaker tributes. Heather tightened her hold on the armchair as she watched Lavender mercilessly stab Blaze in the back with a smile on her face. This action was clearly targeted at Heather. Just for a second, she was satisfied with the fact that she was the one who killed her.

Quickly though, Heather scolded herself for thinking such thoughts. This was not how her father had raised her. She couldn't dishonour his memory by behaving this way.

Her predictions seemed to turn out to be true when she saw Gauis run with the boy from District 7, Branch. Just like Todd, he was killed by an escorpeclicus on the second day.

Much to the dismay of the crowd, Heather didn't show any emotion during the recap. Not when Sadie killed Blue. Not when Todd died in her arms. Not when she had her breakdown. Not when she saw the way Gauis injured Mason. Especially that. The fight between them was intense to the point where Heather forgot what it was about. There was only one indication of how hard this was for her and thankfully, it wasn't visible to the audience. However, there is a possibility that the person who's responsible for moving the chair might notice the foam coming out of the armchair's fabric.

Finally, when the recap was done, Caesar announced her as the victor, the audience cheered for her, and she then shipped off to the president's mansion where the Victory Banquet will be held. As soon as she got there, Heather was whisked away by her prep team to reapply her makeup and fix her hair.

Heather thought that she was going to wear another dress but that was before Zedoary came to adjust her dress. Turns out that there was another skirt hiding behind her shorter skirt. A few twists and removal of pins was all it took for the longer skirt to come out. Heather loved flowers, she really did. But god was she glad that this skirt was just white and didn't have any hint of plant life in it. By the time they were done, it was time to go.

Opening the door of the guest room she was staying in, she found Nola on the other side of the door. She was to escort her to Haymitch. The whole time, Nola was going on about the important people who'll be attending the banquet and how she should behave. Obviously, Heather was ignoring her lectures. In fact, she was even focusing on where they were going.

All Heather could think about was that she was going back home. Home to Aeson, home to the Everdeens, and hopefully, home to her nephew. All she had to do was go to this party and do the final interview then it would be over. Well, temporary over. She still had her victory tour and mentoring District 12 future tributes. However, that would be in the future and already had the present to deal with. For now, she could go back to her home. Back to her district.

Nola and Heather met Haymitch in front of the doors to the ballroom. Instinctively, Heather wrapped her arm around his. As they waited for the announcement of Heather's entrance, Haymitch told her, "You know this isn't the end, right? You've just passed an obstacle of a bigger problem. And there is no winning after that"

"I know. But I don't care about power, or who had it over her. As long as I've got my family, everything will be fine, and the rest will follow," she remarked with a reassuring expression on her face.

For some reason, Haymitch seemed to avoid eye contact with her afterwards. She wanted to ask him but she didn't know how to word it. How to ease into a subject both of them never wanted to discuss. Still, it was better to talk now than later. Just as she was about to open her mouth, her name was called out.

People immediately clapped the moment they caught sight of her. Without a second, Heather started to giggle and wave her hand at them. Music began to play when she and Haymitch reached the center of the ballroom. Thankfully, Nola went over the basics of dancing with her earlier so she knew what to do.

Not long after the dance was over, people swarmed Heather and took her away from Haymitch. The bastard even had the nerve to smirk and wink at her.

The next few hours were spent with Heather taking pictures, listening to the opinions of the Capitol's citizens on the events of the Hunger Games, and dancing with those who asked her. It's then Heather realized that the people of the Capitol weren't that bad, they were still ignorant and oblivious, but they weren't horrible. It was those who were in power that she had to watch out for. She also noticed how men looked at her in an inappropriate way and some of them who danced with her would try to touch her as many times as possible. She tried to ignore it at first but it was getting out of hand and it made her uncomfortable.

After checking to see if anyone was paying attention to her, Heather made a beeline to the balcony. She placed her elbows in the railing, hands on her cheeks, and took a deep breath before exhaling.

Unfortunately, she didn't have much time to admire the view of the Capitol before someone approached. Without turning around, Heather sighed loudly and said, "I know, I know, I'm not supposed to be out here and I could have all the time to breathe fresh air back home. But come on, Haymitch, you can't tell me that you didn't feel like suffocating during your Victor Banquet?"

Silence resided between them.

"I may not be Haymitch, but you do have a point," a deep voice that definitely didn't belong to Haymitch spoke.

Surprised, Heather turned around to come face-to-face with a chiselled handsome face. He stood in a confident stance with a smile that could make most girls swoon. But she wasn't most girls. Heather liked to think that she was immune to good-looking people, and most of the time, it turned out to be true. The reason was probably because people with good looks more than often turn out to be more than what you thought they were.

Not wasting a second, Heather smiled and leaned her body on the railing with her arms crossed. "Finnick, is it?"

The question wasn't meant to be taunting. Everyone knew who Finnick Odair was. He was basically the Capitol's favourite victor. A title Heather may or may not steal from him in good time. Thankfully, Finnick picked up on her tone and his eyes flashed in amusement.

"I can't describe how humbled I am for you to know my name," he said in a dramatic voice. Heather couldn't stop her smile from stretching. He reminded her way too much of Aeson. "You're Heather, right?"

Heather gasped and put her hand on her chest to empathize, "You have no idea how honoured I am to be recognized by someone of your status."

It didn't take a second or two for both of them to start laughing.

"But seriously," she talked between the giggles, "What are you doing out here? Don't you have a group of girls in there to entertain?"

"Don't you have the guests in there to entertain?" Finnick asked.

"I asked first."

"I asked a better question," he replied automatically.

"Are you sure? Cause I'm pretty sure I gave an answer earlier," Heather put her hands on her hips and raised her eyebrows. They kept their eyes on each other, both refusing to lose. Unluckily for Finnick, Heather was an expert when it came to staring competitions. Once again, victory became hers when he blinked. "Ha! You blinked."

He threw his arms in the air and exclaimed, "Alright, fine. You win."

"I'm sorry, I didn't hear you," Heather cupped her ear and came closer to Finnick.

A chuckle passed through his lips before he spoke up, "You win."

"Ah, I never get tired of hearing it. Now, what are you doing out here?" She looked at him inquiringly. 

"I was following you," Finnick said, which made Heather's eyebrows furrowed in confusion. "Let's just say, that I'm curious as to what kind of person you are, Heather Mildbreeze."

"Why are you? I'm an open book," Heather told him in a soft voice.

"Then tell me, Heather," he began walking closer to her. "Are you the kind, generous hero you claim to be or are you a manipulative, cunning killer?"

Heather smirked at him in a mocking way, "Both. Without the killer and hero part. I'm just a girl who would do anything to go back to her family. That's really all I am."

"I don't think so," Finnick stood in front of her somberly. "I think there's more to you than you let on."

"Well, think what you think, these are your thoughts. Is that all?"

"No," Finnick sighed. "When we go back there, Snow will approach you and trust me when I say that you won't like what is going to happen."

"What is it?" Heather asked worriedly. She couldn't help but note how Finnick's voice changed. It went from friendly and kind to hostile and… angry.

"You'll see," he pulled a piece of paper from his jacket and gave it to her. "This is my number. I realize that we don't know each other that well, but I'd really like for us to become friends."

"I'd really like that too," the words were out before Heather could process them. "It was nice meeting you Finnick."

"You too," he smiled at her then he was gone.

Heather still stood outside, staring at the numbers printed on the paper. A cold gust of wind that reminded her of the desert passed through. Immediately, unwanted memories plagued her mind and she put the piece of paper between her breasts. She raced back to the ballroom. The nightmares were more than enough, she didn't need another reminder of the arena.

Seconds after she re-entered the room, a young girl who couldn't be younger than eleven years old approached her. Her chestnut hair was let down in curls and she was wearing a grey floral dress which contrasted with her blue eyes. The young girl was hesitant when it came to talking. She would open her mouth to say something but then decides against it.

"Is there anything I can help you with, sugar?" Heather squatted down in front of the girl so she won't avoid looking at her. "What's your name?"

"Ah, um, m-my name is Seraphina Snow," the girl stuttered. Heather narrowed her eyes at her for a moment, could the girl be President Snow's granddaughter? "Most people call me Nina though. Only grandpa calls me by my full name."

"Grandpa? Do you mean President Snow?" Heather gave Nina a questioning look.

Nina nodded her head.

"Well, did you want to tell me something, Nina?" She got up when her knees started to hurt from bending them for too long.

Miraculously, Nina's cheeks got rosier than they already were. "Um, actually, I w-wanted to give you something that I m-made."

Heather raised an eyebrow and watched Nina as she got something out of her saddlebag. Her hand trembled as she reached out and handed Heather a bracelet. It brought warmth to Heather when she held it. The fact that someone made this for her meant a lot.

The bracelet was made of blue and yellow thread with silver charms attached to it. They consisted of flowers (of course), a first aid kit, a heart, water, a knife, and a ...shell?

"Is that a seashell?" Heather looked at Nina weirdly.

"Yeah, just like the one in your necklace," She pointed at her neck. Heather looked down at it before chuckling.

"This isn't a seashell, it's a leaf," Heather explained.

"Oh," Nina said in realization. "Sorry."

"That's okay, you aren't the first one to make this mistake," Heather giggled. "Thank you so much for this gift, Nina. Though you really didn't have to go through the trouble to do this for me."

"But I wanted to," Nina smiled shyly. "I'm glad you like it. Moe didn't think you'd do."

"Moe?"

"Imogen. She's my older sister," she replied.

"Well, you can tell Moe that I don't just like the bracelet. I love it," Heather grinned at Nina. The young girl, however, continued to stare at her face as if there was a puzzle on Heather's face that she was trying to solve. Suddenly, Nina blurted out, "You're so beautiful."

Heather's eyes widened in shock. Nina, realizing what she had just said, instantly covered her mouth with both her hands.

"Uh, thank you?" she said reluctantly and tilted her head in bewilderment.

"N-no, I, uh, I mean, it's not like that. Ugh!" Heather regarded Nina in amusement as she struggled to find words to explain her previous statement. "It's just, everyone keeps talking about how smart you are, your good looks, and how you're a skilled fighter. I want to be like that. I want people to admire me as they do to you."

Heather stared at the girl for a while before she replied. "Nina, you can't be as beautiful as I am because you're already beautiful in your own way. But let me tell you something, life isn't all about good looks. As for the rest, if you work hard, I'm sure you'll be able to achieve them."

Nina went on to say something but she was cut off by a sharp voice. "Seraphina."

Both girls looked up from each other to see President Snow walking towards them. Heather couldn't help but notice that Nina stood straighter than before. When he reached them, he said to Nina, "What are you doing here, my dear? Your mother is frantically searching for you. The party is almost over."

"Oh, I'm sorry for worrying you, Grandpa. I was just talking to Heather," Nina apologized.

"That's alright, my dear. Why don't you run along and find your mother?" President Snow suggested.

"Okay," Nina turned to Heather. "Bye, Heather."

"It was nice meeting you, Seraphina," Heather smiled at her retreating figure.

"Would like me to accompany you to your room, Miss Mildbreeze," while President Snow's voice was as warm as honey, his eyes didn't show an ounce of it.

"Oh, no, that's alright. You don't have to," Heather declined politely.

"It's no trouble for me," he insisted. "Besides, there is something that I'd like to discuss with."

"Alright then," she said cautiously. "Lead the way."

Heather remembered Finnick's words from earlier. She didn't doubt that what he said was true. She knew that nothing good came out when you associate yourself with someone like President Snow. Still, she couldn't think of anything that he might ask of her. She had no doubt that it had to do with entertaining the Capitol. But there was a lot to the word 'entertainment' so it was a narrow end there.

As they were ascending the stairs, Heather looked down and searched for Haymitch. Just like she expected, he was by the bar. Fortunately, he wasn't drunk, or at least he wasn't acting like it. She wanted nothing more than for him to reach out for him and to be in his hold. Right now, he was the only one who she could trust. Who cared for her.

"So, what is that you wanted to talk to me about?" Heather finally asked after a few moments of silence. When it came to her curiosity, she would all but forget about patience.

However, soon she'd come to regret her decision as the words that passed through President Snow's lips were not what she expected at all. Her chest rose and fell while her brain processed this new piece of information. This couldn't happen to her. She thought that she'd only have to deal with the Capitol people at least two weeks once a year. Not once or twice a month. And to do what? Satisfy the desires of pleasure of some arrogant aristocrat?

She should've died in that arena.

She should've died in that arena.

Currently, President Snow was listing off the consequences if she didn't agree to submit herself into prostitution. One moment, he was threatening to kill the people she loved as he did to Haymitch then-

SLAP!

"You have two granddaughters," Heather uttered with venom clear in her voice. "You have two granddaughters and you should feel ashamed for even thinking about making such a suggestion. If you think that I'm going to cower and kneel beneath you then you got one thing going, you bastard. I'm not afraid of you, and I will never be."

Picking up her skirt, she ignored the fact that her feet were already sore and ran away from the scene. When she entered the sanctuary that was her room, she collapsed against the door. No sooner, loud sobs filled the room. There was no guarantee that Aeson and June would be safe anymore. Not after Snow confessed that he was the one who ordered the death of Haymitch's family.

The first time Heather cried herself to sleep was on the day she discovered her father's death. But she wasn't alone then. She had Aeson with her. Now, she had no one.

Tonight, the nightmares she dreamed weren't about her being tortured in the arena. No, it was Aeson and June being killed in the most inhumane ways.


	10. Chapter 9: Home

**Author's Note: I have three announcements! Firstly, I decided that I won't have Effie as the escort because it won't make sense if she was the escort for District 12 for a long time and hasn't moved on to higher districts. Secondly, after I publish the last chapter (which will be the next one)****, I'll take some time to edit this book (most likely three weeks or a month). Thirdly, when I finish editing it, I'll post a list of things that changed so that you won't be confused when you read the next book.**

**Hope you enjoy today's chapter! Don't hesitate to write reviews of this story!**

* * *

Light.

That was the first thing Heather saw. Sunlight, to be more specific, peaking through the curtains.

Whoever said that light was good was a filthy liar. It was an annoying beam that brought pain to her sight when she looked at it. Heather preferred darkness. It brought solitude and silence with it. Something that she seemed to want at the moment.

"Go away, please," she whimpered even though she knew that nothing could be done as the sun continued to shine brightly.

Suddenly, it hit her.

Nola would be coming any moment and god knows what a fit she would throw if she saw Heather lying on the floor. Hurriedly, she got up from the floor and went immediately into the bathroom. Looking at her reflection in the mirror, Heather touched the red marks on her neck and cursed herself. There was no denying the fact that the necklace she wore was the cause of this. It took a long time to take off her dress because of how tight it is. A small piece of paper fell down when she managed to get it off. It was Finnick's phone number.

Steadily, she kneeled down and picked it up. She then took off her mother's necklace and opened it. What most people didn't know was that it was a locket rather than a charm. Heather didn't reveal that bit of information because it held a photograph of her mother. It was the only thing she had of her and she didn't want to share that with the world.

Heather looked nothing like her mother. Just like Aeson and her father, her mother was blonde and had an easy smile. The only indication that they were related was their baby blue eyes.

Sometimes Heather wondered if she was even from this family. Of course, her father and brother wouldn't hesitate to reassure her that they were her biological family. But they still wouldn't answer her question about why she looked different. Why she had light red hair rather than being blond.

Sometimes, Heather wondered if her mother would have loved her. If she would have been proud of her. She probably would. Until Heather was reaped into Heather Games that is.

With a sigh, Heather placed the paper into the locket and closed. She folded the dress and took the time to take out the hair accessories so she wouldn't have to listen to the moans of disappointment from her prep team.

Last but not least, there was the bracelet that Nina made on her wrist. Heather thought of Snow's proposal and the way she responded. Would he really kill off her family?

Part of her wanted to go to Haymitch and tell him what happened. But she didn't want to trouble him. He already did his job as her mentor. She brought this issue upon herself and she was going to solve it on her own.

Besides the beds, Heather was going to miss the showers as well. Under the shower head, she felt as if she was under a warm summer rain.

Drying her hair with a towel, Heather stepped out from the bathroom just as a knock sounded from the door. Not a few seconds later, Nola entered the room as if she owned the room.

Despite the growing ache inside of her to sneer at the woman, Heather's lips curled up in a dazzling smile, "Good morning, Nola."

"Good morning to you too, my dear," Nola greeted in her chirpy voice. "I just came here to wake you up but it seems that I don't need to do that anymore. Anyhow, I also wanted to tell you how wonderful you were yesterday."

"Oh, thank you," Heather stopped drying her hair. She knew that Nola didn't come here just to congratulate her.

"Let me help you with that," Nola went on to approach her and took the towel away. She led Heather towards the vanity table and sat her down on a small cushioned chair. Opening a drawer, Nola pulled out an object that resembled a gun. Heather watched her curiously as Nola proceeded to turn the machine on. "It's going to feel a little bit hot in your head so don't freak out."

Heather nodded her head mindlessly and Nola was right. It did feel hot in her head. Still, it seemed that Nola forgot to mention the deafening sound that the object made. Heather flinched at the loud obnoxious noise.

Finally, after a good five minutes her hair was dry. She touched it, amazed at the fact that she didn't have to waste forty minutes to dry her hair when she could do it in five minutes.

Heather ran her fingers through her now warm scalp as Nola returned the machine. "By the way, dear, I saw you leave the party with President Snow yesterday. What did he want to talk to you about?"

Ah, so that was what she wanted to know.

So, just to spite her, Heather decided to tell her half the truth. "He just wanted to talk to me about a job offer here in the Capitol."

Before Nola could respond to the revelation, the door was slammed open by none other than Azalea. Cerise and Sorrel were right behind her and they didn't hesitate to kick Nola out of the room to get Heather ready for her final interview.

As soon as Nola was out of the room, they didn't waste any time in preparing Heather. Cerise was rubbing her skin with cream until it began to glow, Sorrel was pulling her hair into half a bun, and Azalea was painting her nails in purple.

It didn't take long before Heather found herself in a knee-length chiffon lilac dress. To her relief, they didn't cake her face with make-up.

"You look beautiful," Zedoary said behind her. He came after her prep team dressed her to check up on her appearance. "As always."

"Thank you. But, I do owe it to you for making me fabulous dresses," Heather told him.

"No, my dear. It's all you," Sorrel came up and pulled Heather into half a hug. Soon, she was joined by the others in the hug.

"I'm going to miss you all," Heather exclaimed.

"Oh, but you'll see us every year. Not to mention your Victory Tour months from now," Cerise pointed out.

"I'll be spending my time designing new dresses for you," Zedoary added.

"Would you look at the time, you have to hurry up or you'll be late!" Azalea announced. Immediately, Zedoary took hold of her arm and they fast walked to the lounge that the interview was being held in.

Surprisingly, she found Haymitch downstairs drinking something from a mug. Heather doubted that it would be alcohol because Haymitch usually drank it straight from the bottle instead of pouring it in a cup. So just to spite him, Heather went over to him, took the cup from his hands, and drank from it. However, her plan backfired as her face cringed when she tasted the bitterness of the drink. Haymitch smirked and chuckled at her reaction while she pouted at him.

Hearing someone calling her name out loud, Heather turned to Caesar strolling towards her. Instinctively, Heather grinned at him and they hugged.

"Are you nervous for the interview?" Caesar asked her.

"To be honest, I'm just anxious to get back home," she told him.

"Missing your brother?" He led her by the hand to the chair she was supposed to sit at.

"You have no idea," Caesar laughed at her remark and it wasn't long before the cameras were rolling.

For the first few seconds, Heather had to sit and smile properly like a princess while Caesar addressed the viewer. It wasn't hard, all she had to do was act like Nola. He started off by asking about her feelings during the pre-events of the games.

"I forgot to ask you this last time, but what did you do during your session with the Gamemakers?"

Heather narrowed her eyes at him in a playful way, "Caesar?"

"Yes?"

"Are you sure you watch the games?"

He gave her a confused look before responding, "I'm positive."

"Then watch it again. You're a smart man, I'm sure you'll be able to figure it out. Besides, the answer will probably be in one of your next questions."

"If you say so," he went along with it. "So, did you plan on running away from the Cornucopia before or after you found out that the arena was a desert?"

"Oh, before. Definitely before," she answered. "Um, I didn't actually intend to go back to the Cornucopia. I just wanted to run, find a water source, and build my own weapons so that I could kill the last remaining tributes when I come out of hiding."

"But you did find a water source," Caesar pointed out.

"I did, but only after I got the necessary equipment," Heather reminded him.

"So, you didn't plan on raiding the Careers?"

She shook her head. "It was just a back-up plan."

"But how did you deflect the set up traps?" He continued to inquire.

"Ah, would you like to guess the answer?" Heather smirked.

Caesar put on his thinking face then glanced at him, "Can I get a hint?"

"I closed my eyes and took off my shoes."

A few seconds passed before Caesar sighed and looked at her, "I give up."

"Thought so," Heather remarked before exhaling. "When I was fifteen, I went to the meadow to collect extra herbs that my dad needed. On my way back, I came across this plant that I've seen before. My curiosity got the best of me and I went to inspect it. In the end, not only did I gain a bunch of nasty burns but I also became blind. I only got my sight back three months ago. During the time that I was blind, I depended on my ears and barefeet to know my surroundings. I would listen to different types of noises to associate them with a particular location. I would look out for the people's footsteps. The soft rumbles one would make when they'd walk. And when things got too loud, I'd go hide in a tree. Listen to the beautiful melodies the birds would hum. Feel the smoothness of the leaves. And I still depend on my other senses. When I was walking through those traps, I didn't anticipate their presence with my eyes, but rather with my feet."

"Did you ever regret approaching that plant?" Caesar asked after a while. He was still amazed at the load of information she revealed to him.

"No," Heather responded. "When I was blind, I began to appreciate things that aren't usually given attention to. And they were beautiful. I didn't need to see them to know so."

The interview seemed to go on and on. Caesar would ask her question after question and she'd answer them honestly. After all, she had nothing to hide.

He asked her about Rust, and she told him how she had been angry at his death. How she refused to talk to anyone but her brother and her father. How she isolated herself. How she began to think irrationally. The only part she didn't mention was the fact that she still hasn't recovered from his death.

He asked about Mason.

"I'm going to tell you what I told him back then," Heather started. "You don't have to have a reason to do something that feels right. Thinking isn't necessarily bad but we always rely on our minds to do the right thing. It's not ...wrong, but, sometimes, we should shut our minds and listen to our hearts because mostly likely, that's where our inner voice is."

"Heather, I swear, if there was a competition for the most inspirational person in Panem, you'd win it in a heartbeat," she laughed at his remark. "What about Lavender and Gaius? What made you intervene between them?"

She was prepared for the next question before he asked her. " I saw how they struggled to kill the other. And, one way or the other, I would've eventually faced one of them. So, I thought, what was the point of hiding anymore? If one of them was going to die, it would've been better at my hand rather than on their hands. Lavender was the closest to me, and the rest was history. Anything else?"

Caesar shook his head and signed his hand for the camera to stop recording.

Next thing she knew, Heather was surrounded by hugs, kisses, and tears. Finally, when she entered her room, she found a bag that was never there laying on her bed. She searched through it and found a pair of knitting needles along with yearns of various colors. Inside, there was also a note.

To my beautiful Heather,

I remembered how you told me that you loved to knit when you're nervous. Maybe knitting during the train ride might lessen your anxiousness to see your family. Also, you'll find the dress you wore in the reaping along with your mother's necklace and the bracelet I found in your bathroom (I'm not sure if it's important to you or not).

Till we meet next,

Zedoary

* * *

Cameras followed Heather as she jumped into Aeson's awaiting arms. She was home. She was finally home. She couldn't help herself from bursting into happy tears as she buried her head into her brother's neck. Her hold tightened around him and she refused to let go of him, not that he complained. Aeson just stroked her hair and whispered to her about how much he missed and how proud he was of her.

Knowing that she was being filmed for the sake of rich people who wanted to see her reunion with her brother, Heather stepped away from him and reached out for June, who was holding a fair-headed baby.

June was about to hand the baby over to Aeson but Heather stopped her and took the baby instead. The baby was on the verge of crying until he came face to face with Heather's freckles. Curiosity took over him as he reached out his hand and placed it on her nose. Slowly, he began to trace her freckles. Drool was coming out of his mouth as he opened it mesmerizingly.

Heather chuckled and looked at June who was about to cry. Her sister-in-law pulled her into half a hug as the baby was still in her arms.

"His name is Luke," Aeson told her.

At the sound of his name, Luke looked at his father and extended his arms towards him. With a smile, Aeson took his son from Heather's hold which allowed June to fully hug her.

Noticing Haymitch from the corner of her eye, Heather didn't hesitate in approaching him and hugging him. She heard a few gasps from behind her but that didn't stop from embracing the man. Even though he seemed surprised at her act of affection, it wasn't long before she felt him hug her back. "Thank you, for everything."

Looking up at the small smile that decorated Haymitch's face, Heather said in a teasing voice, "Don't miss me too much, I'll come to annoy you sometime later."

"Looking forward to it," came Haymitch's sarcastic reply.

Heather laughed.

It felt good to be home.


	11. Epilogue

Fire.

That was how Snow ended it.

How he ended Aeson's and June's lives.

It has been a week since she came back home and she had been living with them. Even though she had a house in the victor village, she didn't use it for those seven days. Nightmares plagued her. There were times where she could've masked her demons but when she couldn't, Aeson would immediately be by her side during the night.

When she wasn't having a nightmare or wandering the halls aimlessly, Heather was spending her time with Luke. She and a little bugger became very fast friends to the delight of June and Aeson. Heather would change his diapers, take naps with her, and they would cuddle together in her room.

Occasionally , when June and Aeson were out of the house, Heather would talk to Luke about her nightmares, how she missed Todd and Rust, and how sometimes she wished she would have died in the arena. Of course, provided that he's a baby, he didn't understand her but there was a point. And when she had the urge to cry, Heather would look at his face. Luke would just stare at her and give her a blank look. It was then that Heather realized that Luke didn't care and wouldn't care until he's old enough to understand that his aunt was a killer.

For some reason, Aeson and June won't allow her to go outside. At first, she couldn't see Ray and the rest of the Everdeens. But as the days went on, her will to go outside decreased. What really baffled her was why Katniss didn't come to visit her.

Another thing that kept her mind going was Snow's threat to her family. Every time June and Aeson would come back from work, she would go check up on them. However, the fact that he didn't hurt them didn't comfort her. She still had no idea whether his threats were real or not.

At least that's what she thought before their deaths, Heather knew his threat was real but she refused to believe it. Apparently, Heather's decision to go outside was the reason for her family's ultimate death.

Heather had had enough of staying inside. She tried to reason with them one day until they finally agreed. The only condition they bestowed upon her was that she had to take Luke along with her. At that time, he was only two weeks old. As it turns out, Luke was born when Todd died which was a bittersweet case for Heather.

Although she didn't understand their request, Heather obliged to it.

Taking the heavily clothed Luke in her arms, she promised his parents that they'd be back quick since night had already fallen. The wind breeze hit Heather as she emerged from the house. A few lights were open as everyone in town was either eating dinner or preparing to go to bed.

Luke was still asleep in her arms as she walked around. After strolling around the shops, Heather was about to head to the meadow but then Luke awoke. Low sound came from his mouth and she feared that he was going to cry but he just opened his eyes and stared at her. Then he started to cry.

These days, the only reason Luke ever cried was because he was hungry. So it was no brainer that he wanted June so she could breastfeed him.

Not wanting Luke's cries to disturb the people, Heather tried to walk fast to her house without dropping Luke. Then there it was.

Fire.

That was what consumed her house when she returned.

Fire.

It was the downfall of both June and Aeson. What burned them and destroyed them to the point they became nothing but ashes.

* * *

Not a single tear was shed.

Heather didn't cry, sob or show any signs of grief since the incident. At first, it was because she couldn't believe it. She thought that maybe they weren't inside the house, that they may still be alive. But soon realization hit her. Snow won't have burned her house if they weren't inside She just placed her hand on her heart and felt her beating heart.

I can't promise that I will always be with you, Heather. However, I promise you that I will always be here.

That night. The night she lost them, Peacekeepers marched towards her house to clear out the flames and people began to gather around to see what happened.

After seeing how much of a skilled fighter she was in the games, no one dared approach Heather for fear of her reaction since she wasn't displaying any.

Finally, Blaze, June's older brother, came and joined her. His eyes were already red from crying and he looked like he wanted to share his grief with her. However, before he could say anything to her, she handed him Luke.

"Take him," she told him. Heather wanted to tell him more, about how she was unworthy of holding him because she was the reason his parents were dead. Unfortunately, she couldn't bring herself to do so; she just repeated what she said earlier. "Take him."

Blaze seemed to want to say more to say but the defeated look she gave made him stop.

Slowly, Heather made her way over to the tree near her house and sat under it. She watched the Peacekeepers clear out everyone from the area.

They weren't able to retrieve anything. She knew that before the Peacekeeper came to inform her about that. Snow didn't just take her family, he also took her home and she had no doubt he had done that on purpose. Obviously this was just an extra reprisal for the slap she gave him. Honestly, she was glad that she wore her mother's necklace with her.

Heather didn't move from where she sat until Haymitch came. She didn't show any emotion as he gently took her hand and made her stand. He led her to her house in the Victor Village. A limestone house that was and wasn't hers.

When they got inside, Haymitch pulled Heather down to sit with him. Holding her hand gently, he started to tell her something that he never told someone before, "Do you know how I won my games?"

Slowly, Heather answered his question in a soft voice, "You used the force field to kill the girl from District 1."

He nodded. "Well, apparently, the Capitol didn't like what I did. More specifically, Snow didn't like that I outsmarted the Capitol. So, after-"

"He killed your family," Heather finished for him.

Haymitch sighed and turned to her with pain and sorrow visible in his eyes. "And my girlfriend. Look, Heather, you might think that you're all alone in this world but you're not. Because I'm here and damn me if I'm going to leave you."

Heather wanted to cry and hold on to him but she couldn't. After she had used too much of her heart, her mind wouldn't let do it again after what had led her to doing so. Haymitch could say that he'd always be there for him but he has no way of guaranteeing that. At least, she discovered how he became like this.

"Do you want me to stay with you?" He asked. She shook her head.

That night, she dreamed of fire.

The next few days passed by a breeze. Those who could afford to, left stuff by her door. Several Peacekeepers came by to drop some things as well which confused her. However, when she came upon those gifts she saw that they were from the Capitol. There were all kinds of stuff her fans sent her. Dresses, jewelry, shoes, books, and many more. But the one that caught her attention was the trunk that Zedoary and her prep team sent her. It was filled with another pair of knitting needles and yarns, shampoo and hair condition, nail polishes, wax, planting seeds and gardening equipment and clothes (thankfully, that included trousers and simple shirts).

Cray, the Head Peacekeeper, dropped by to deliver her brother's ashes to her. June's ashes were with Blaze and his family.

Then the day that Heather waited for arrived. Snow had finally come to pay her a visit.

They'd sat at her kitchen table, across from each other. Two peacekeepers were outside of her door.

Heather sighed, "Let's get this over with, shall we?"

"We shall."

"Good, cause I have a favor to ask of you," she said.

Snow looked surprised. "You think that after what happened, I'll do what you want me to do?"

Heather's face was expressionless as she talked to him, "You would if you don't want the 69th victor dead."

His eyes turned malice towards her, "You wouldn't."

"I wouldn't? Then tell me, why do you think that? After all, this is my life and I can end it whenever I can," she mocked him.

"Your nephew is still alive," Snow pointed out.

"So, what?" Heather said in a sharp voice,

After a few moments of silence, Snow spoke, "What is it that you want?"

"If I ever do end up pregnant, you'll let me keep the baby."

"And if I don't?"

"Then I die with the fetus."

Snow's eyes search around her face to check for any kind of uncertainty, "Then you got yourself a deal, Ms. Mildbreeze."

The moment she made sure of Snow heading towards the train station, Heather got dressed and went to where Blaze lived. Before he could say anything to her, she cut him off by stating, "I'm taking Luke to live with me tomorrow."

Blaze looked a little startled at her declaration but he nodded his head anyways. Satisfied with his response, Heather then headed to the Seam. There were issues that she needed to solve. People's eyes seemed to be following her as she walked around the Seam. It was probably because she didn't come out of her house for days or because of the fancy dress she was wearing that she got from the Capitol since all her clothes were burned in the fire. Perhaps, it was both.

Standing outside of the Everdeens' residence, Heather took deep breaths then knocked on the door. Katniss was the one to open the door. Strangely, her eyes narrowed at Heather, but Prim came out of the house before she could say anything. Immediately, when the little girl caught sight of Heather, she jumped into her arms.

"Heather! I miss you so much!" Prim exclaimed.

Heather managed to smile and hugged her back. That's the least she could do, for Prim's sake. "I missed you too. How come you didn't come visit me though?"

"The real question is why YOU didn't come?" Katniss asked

"What do you mean?"

"You mean… you don't know?" Her voice softened but she still appeared guarded.

"Know what? Katniss, what happened?" Now she was getting worried. What occurred that got Katniss to act like this way?

"Prim, get inside," said Katniss in an authoritative voice. Prim looked like she wanted to protest but nonetheless she followed her sister's order.

Katniss took Heather's hand and led her somewhere. It was then Heather noticed how different Katniss looked. She didn't change physically but she seemed more... mature. Especially with the look in her eye that Heather couldn't identify.

Walking through the seam, Heather began to note how things were worse than the last time she came there. Things in the Seam are always bad but they were never this terrible. Finally, they stopped at the border between the Seam and the town.

"Kat? What happened? Where is your dad?" Heather asked.

Katniss explained everything to her. How in the second day of the hunger games there was an explosion in the mines that no coal miner survived. Not only that but some of the coal that was supposed to go to the capital was destroyed as well. Which caused the coal to be delivered late to the capital. Because of this, the capital minimized the food supplies it would regularly send to District 12. Then Katniss went on about how she, Prim, and their mother almost died of hunger.

"And when you came back. I thought that you were going to come and help us like you always do, but you never came-"

"Katniss. I-I didn't know," Heather frantically said.

"Well, it's too late now. We don't need you anymore. I don't need you," and she left.

Heather wanted nothing more than to follow after her but it was as if her feet were glued to the ground. "But I do," she whispered to herself.

Realization hit Heather. Katniss didn't only need her, she needed Heather to be strong so she could rely on her. There was nothing wrong with that. Katniss was still a child and it was expected of her to feel that way, but the problem was, Heather wasn't strong as she was before.

That was two weeks ago.

Two weeks ago, Heather was weak, grieving, and empty. Now, she was a crumbling tower waiting to fall down and perish.

The only thing that kept her from falling was Luke. Sure, he also had Blaze, but Luke was the closest thing she had to Aeson. The little guy depended on her. Cyan, Blaze's wife, would come a few times a day to breast-feed Luke since she had a one year old.

Haymitch would also visit to check on her. He wouldn't talk to her most of the time. Normally, he would enter the house like he owns it and sit in the living room. He would be drinking and watching her as she would knit. Strangely, that was Heather's favourite time of the day.

A month has passed since she won the games, and somehow things were worse than before.

After waking up from another nightmare, Heather wanted to head downstairs for a cup of water, but stopped after hearing Luke's cries. She went back to her room and picked him up from the bed. She walked downstairs with him screaming his head off.

"Shhh," Heather began to rock the baby in her arms. "I'm sorry, but I can't give you what you want now. You have to wait until Cyan comes tomorrow."

Finally, after many attempts at getting him back to sleep, Heather sighed and began to sing one of her mother's lullabies that Aeson always sang to her when she was little.

If I had to let you go  
I would be no more  
And if it made you happy  
Then nothing would stop me

Oh my dear

Your smile if of gold

Your laughter is music to my ears

My world revolves around you

And you mean everything to me

I don't need to stand next to you

You always had me along the way

Just think of me and I'll be here

And know that I've always loved you

Luke's cries started to quiet down and it wasn't long before he fell back asleep. Sighing in relief, Heather put him back to bed and came back to drink water. While rinsing her cup, Heather noticed her necklace beside the telephone. The necklace that held Finnick's phone number.

After gathering her courage, Heather called him and waited through the ringing for someone to pick up on the other side. Anxious thoughts filled Heather's mind. What if he didn't want to talk to her? What if he couldn't understand her? What would she sa-

"Hello?" Came a groggily voice.

"Finnick?"

THE END OF BOOK ONE

**A/N: Just like I said in the last author's note, I'll be updating a final author's note to mention the changes that I will make when I edit this book, and announce the publication of the second book, _Mother, _which will be exploring the main events that happened in Heather's life between the 69th Hunger games and the 74th Hunger games. In the second book, you'll see more of Finnick, Haymitch, Gale, and Katniss.**


	12. Final Author's Note

**First of all, I want to thank you all for sticking around with this story. You have no idea how happy I am that you did so.**

**Secondly, here are the changes I made while I was editing the story. It's not that different but I did some tweaks here and there;**

**1\. In the beginning, it was stated that Heather didn't have any friends after Rust, but she does now. It's Miche, Peeta's older brother**

**2\. Blaze, June's older brother, doesn't like the Seam people**

**3\. Description of June: She's blonde, has blue eyes and fair skin**

**4\. As you all know by now, I decided to not make Effie this year's escort because that means she'll move forward to higher districts by the time of the 74th hunger games. So, District 12's escort for the 69th hunger games is Nola Raynott.**

**5\. Before she goes to the Capitol, Heather hugs Aeson first instead of him doing it first.**

**6\. Description of Todd; He has hazel eyes and caramel skin**

**7\. Heather pretended to knit before her session with the gamemakers and while she's waiting for the games to start with Zedoary in her company. Knitting is something she does when she's nervous since she can't actually do it, she pretends to.**

**8\. Heather rubs her feet with a cream since they were burned from walking in the hot sand when she went to steal from the Careers.**

**9\. Description of Mason; He's blonde.**

**10\. Heather calls President Snow a bastard when he tells her about his plans for prostituting her**

**11\. Heather places her hand where her heart is when she discovered her brother is dead after denying his death. Flashback to prologue to understand the meaning behind this action.**

**12\. Heather sings the same lullaby that Aeson sang to her in the beginning to Luke.**

**Thirdly, I want to inform you that the sequel is up. It's called Mother and it's the only other story than this in my account. Hope you enjoy it.**


End file.
